Aiming to punctuate the best year of his career with another big title, top-ranked Alexander Zverev got his ATP Finals campaign off to a strong start with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over debutant Rafael Jodar on Sunday.
Zverev claimed his first two Grand Slam titles this year and ascended to the No. 1 ranking for the first time. He’s aiming for his third trophy at Finals after taking the season-ending event in 2018 and 2021.
“It's been a very good year for me. A lot of things that I've wanted to achieve I have achieved this year," Zverev said, according to The Associated Press. “But playing here you can never take it for granted.”
The 20-year-old Jodar is the first man to qualify for the Finals in the same season that he made his tour-level debut in.
The 6-foot-6 (1.98-meter) Zverev dominated with his serve, cranking out 10 aces on the fast indoor surface, and consistently applied pressure on Jodar’s serve.
It was a convincing performance for Zverev after entering on a two-match losing streak that included a straight-set loss to Lorenzo Musetti in his first match as No. 1.
“To start the tournament with a 6-4, 6-4 win is always very, very nice,” Zverev said. “I still think I have a lot of things to improve. It was not a perfect match.”
The only time Zverev got in trouble was when he faced two break points while attempting to serve out the first set. He hit an ace on the first break point and a service winner on the second and then another ace before closing the set out.
“He served very good in those two points, so I didn’t have any chance,” Jodar said.
