Top 5 on serve & return, Zverev is double trouble for opponents

  • Posted: Sep 11, 2024

Alexander Zverev has made a career of holding serve with ease, racing through his service games by overpowering opponents with his hefty first delivery. But the German has been equally as effective on return in 2024, making for a troubling combination for opponents.

His complementary serve and return performance has helped him tally a season-leading 56 match wins and secure qualification for the Nitto ATP Finals for the seventh time.

The 27-year-old is notably among the Top 5 in both serve (8.8) and return quality (7.49), according to Tennis Data Innovations, in partnership with TennisViz. Shot Quality is calculated in real-time by analysing each shot’s speed, spin, depth, width and the impact it has on the opponent. Zverev has an impact by mixing firepower with hefty spin.

A significant improvement in his forehand Shot Quality has provided a boost to Zverev on both serve and return points. In 2023 Zverev was 13th on the forehand Shot Quality index; this year he has surged to fifth. (He is fourth on the backhand leaderboard, the same position he held in 2023.)

“Sascha likes to serve big, return big, but he’s also intelligent on court, he can read the game very, very well,” said Mischa Zverev, former No. 25 in the PIF ATP Rankings and an established member of his brother’s team.

Zverev this season is hammering his first serve at an average of 129 mph, compared to the tour-average 116 mph. It does not get much easier to return his second serve. The 22-time tour-level titlist hits his second serve on average at 105 mph, 11 mph faster than the average.

Zverev’s Serve In 2024:
1st Serve Speed = 129 mph (Tour Avg. = 116 mph) 
1st Serve Accuracy = 59 cm from the sideline (Tour Avg. = 58 cm) 
1st Serve Effectiveness* = 67.1% (Tour Avg. = 60.9%) 
2nd Serve Speed = 105 mph (Tour Avg. = 94 mph) 
2nd Serve Effectiveness* = 26.2% (Tour Avg. = 23.4%) 
*effectiveness is the % of serves that are a combination of aces, unreturned and number of times the server is in an attacking phase on serve+1

Zverev has also notched impressive gains in other key Insights fields. He has surged to 13th (from 61st) in the Steal category, winning points 37.2 per cent of the time from a defensive position. He has jumped from 95th to 44th in Conversion, winning 68.1 per cent of points when in attack.

And he is playing more aggressive tennis, moving from 39th to 22nd on the In Attack leaderboard, reflecting which players spend the most time in attacking positions.

When the tennis balls get sent to the opponent’s end of the court, there is not much breathing room for whomever is across from Zverev.

This year’s Roland Garros finalist is taking an aggressive approach on return, especially should he get a look at a second serve. According to TDI Insights, Zverev is making more returns than the tour average, all while hitting the ball with more speed and spin. His return speed is notably eight mph faster than the average speed.

It is no wonder why on Monday Zverev returned to his career-high No. 2 PIF ATP Ranking, which he last was at in August 2022, when he was sidelined with a severe ankle injury.

Zverev’s Return In 2024:
1st In % = 66% (Tour Avg. = 62%) 
1st Speed = 67 mph (Tour Avg. = 59 mph) 
1st Spin = 1,735 rpm (Tour Avg. = 1,677 rpm) 
2nd In % = 85% (Tour Avg. = 82%) 
2nd Speed = 77 mph (Tour Avg. = 69 mph) 
2nd Spin = 2,078 rpm (Tour Avg. = 1,778 rpm) 

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