The German – runner-up at the US Open in 2020, six-time Grand Slam semi-finalist and champion at the Rome Masters last month – will now aim for a spot in the last eight and a clash with either No.13 seed Holger Rune or Jozef Kovalik.
Story of the match
Griekspoor executed his tactics with precision to snatch an early lead. His drop shot and backhand slice were unsettling Zverev.
The Dutchman served for the opener at 5-3, scuttling forward on pretty much every point, forcing the No.4 seed to find a pass. At the third attempt, Griekspoor found the telling volley to go a set up in a quick-fire 38 minutes.
Zverev was off kilter, his shots popping up into the strike zone of the world No.25. However, the German managed to connect with a reflex volley at the net and rainbowed a lob over Griekspoor, showing his Grand Slam tennis experience.
At 5-4, a cross-court forehand on the run ramped up the pressure and Zverev broke to love to level the sets. He then powered through 11 consecutive points to go 3-0 up and from then on was seemingly unstoppable until 2-2 in the fourth. Griekspoor pounced on an error-strewn game to wrestle back the initiative. His net prowess returned and the Dutchman connected with a backhand drive volley to haul the No.4 seed into a decider.
First appeared on www.rolandgarros.com