‘I feel so alone I need therapy’: the full story of Alexander Zverev’s reveal-all press conference

In recent months, shock defeats for world No 3 Alexander Zverev had been blamed on the weather and mystery sickness bugs.

But this time there was no hiding the toll taken by recent court battles and controversy as Zverev admitted he arrived at Wimbledon in a “hole”.

“It’s difficult to find joy outside the tennis court for me at the moment,” said Zverev after a five-set marathon defeat by Arthur Rinderknech on Tuesday night.

The German, a three-time grand-slam tournament finalist who has twice fought allegations of domestic abuse, acknowledged he is now at breaking point and may seek therapy. “Maybe for the first time in my life I’ll probably need it,” he said. “I’ve been through a lot of difficulties. I’ve been through a lot of difficulties in the media. I’ve been through a lot of difficulties in life generally.”

What was Zverev accused of?

The “difficulties” that Zverev was referring to have been the talk of the tennis circuit for years. Allegations, which he vehemently denies, have dogged him since 2020, and have even led to him requesting the removal of a spectator who shouted “wife beater” during one of his matches.

He was first engulfed in scandal in October 2020 when former girlfriend Olya Sharypova accused him in an interview of violence and emotional abuse. She did not press charges and Zverev said the allegations were “unfounded”, and a 15-month investigation by the men’s ATP Tour found there was “insufficient evidence” to substantiate claims.

However, in 2023, domestic abuse claims were brought by Brenda Patea, with whom he has a child. In November of that year, Zverev was given a penalty order and fined by a German court after being accused of physically abusing Patea. Zverev denied the claims and lodged an objection against the order, which resulted in a public trial. The trial was discontinued in June 2024 after a settlement was agreed between the defendant and the complainant.

After the agreement, the court said: “The decision is not a verdict and it is not a decision about guilt or innocence.”

The saga remains unresolved, however. A further legal battle with the prominent tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg, who helped expose the claims, is unresolved.

‘I just feel very, very lonely’

Until now, Zverev has blamed other factors for his struggles for form since the Australian Open final that he played against eventual champion Jannik Sinner in January. He said he “threw up 37 times” ahead of a shock defeat against an underdog at the Hamburg Open while he said a cold snap was to blame for his French Open loss to Novak Djokovic.

But, for the first time, off-court struggles were cited directly by Zverev immediately after he became the fourth top-10 men’s player to crash out in the first round at this year’s Championships – and the highest-ranked – joining Lorenzo Musetti, Holger Rune, and Daniil Medvedev through the exit door.

Rinderknech, the world No 72, was previously best known for having to retire from a match he was winning at last year’s French Open because he injured his foot kicking an advertising hoarding.

With his girlfriend, Sophia Thomalla, reportedly elsewhere filming, Zverev spoke of feeling “alone” and “empty”. Elaborating on his fragile mental state afterwards, he said: “It’s not a feeling on a tennis court, it’s just a life feeling in general. As I said, I never felt this way before. I don’t know. It’s difficult to find joy outside the tennis court for me at the moment. It’s not an excuse or anything. I think Arthur deserved to win today. It’s nothing like that. It’s something I’ve felt for the past few months. Again, I just feel generally very, very alone and very lonely. I don’t know. Just never felt that way before. I don’t have the answers right now.”

Win-derknech stuns on Centre Court ✨

The Frenchman takes down No.3 seed in a marathon match, winning 7-6(3), 6-7(8), 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-4 in 4 hours and 40 minutes 🇫🇷#Wimbledonpic.twitter.com/Q8sP7S5pN2

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 1, 2025

Other tennis players who turned to therapy

He is not the first player to talk of turning to therapy in recent weeks. Madison Keys had spoken recently of her form improving thanks to counselling. “When I’d gone to see sports psychologists in the past it had been a little tunnel-focused on routines and big moments on the court,” she told the Guardian last week.

“So being able to talk to someone about broader life philosophies helped me get to the root of why I was feeling that way instead of just being uber-focused on decisive moments in a match.”

Naomi Osaka, the four-time major winner, also turned to a therapist when her sister expressed concerns for her wellbeing after a fan verbally abused her, shouting “Naomi, you suck” during a match in 2022.

“I don’t know if I’m allowed to say this, but I finally started talking to a therapist after Indian Wells,” Osaka said. “It only took like a year after the French Open.

“She kind of told me strategies and stuff. I realise how helpful it is. I’m glad that I have people around me that told me to, like, go in that direction.

“But, yeah, I was basically just remembering all the things that she told me to do, just to take deep breaths and reset myself when I need to.”