Zverev sees off Altmaier to continue Munich Open charge

German tennis star Alexander Zverev remains on track for a much-needed title at the Munich Open this week, with the top seed racing past compatriot Daniel Altmaier in straight sets on Wednesday.

Zverev has been in a form rut since making the final of the Australian Open in January, falling first round at the ATP Masters 1000 tournaments in Indian Wells and Monte-Carlo after suffering a trio of shock defeats in February.

This caused the 27-year-old to miss out on his shot at becoming world No.1 in the absence of Jannik Sinner, instead falling to No.3 in the world last week.

He has prevailed twice before at the ATP 250 event in Munich, however, and seems to be building momentum once more after seeing off Altmaier 6-3, 6-2 in less than an hour and a half for a spot in the quarter-finals.

“Just the win made me happy,” Zverev said after the match.

“He makes it complicated. He has beaten lots of top players before.

“He’s beaten Sinner, he’s beaten me before, so he knows how to make it complicated.

“His shots may seem off at times, but he knows how to make it extremely complicated for the top guys, where we feel like we’re not feeling the ball well.

“Daniel doesn’t give you rhythm at all.

“I maybe played a bit worse from the baseline today (compared to the first round), but I served better today, came into the net a bit better and found solutions a bit better, so there are a lot of positives to take.

“I’m extremely happy with the win and looking forward to the next match.”

Tennis betting sites have Zverev a heavy favourite at $2.25 to win his third title in Munich this weekend, ahead of Francisco Cerundolo ($5) and Ben Shelton ($8.50).

Shelton also advanced to the quarter-finals on Wednesday, repelling a stiff challenge from Botic van de Zandschulp to win 7-6(1), 6-3.

He enters the last eight as a slight underdog at BetOnline to beat Luciano Darderi, who is riding a seven-match winning streak on the ATP Tour.

Zverev, meanwhile, faces Tallon Griekspoor in the quarter-finals and is paying just $1.40 to win with online bookmakers.

Sports news