German tennis star Alexander Zverev gave a ball boy the fright of his life while celebrating after winning a point in his second round match against Nikoloz Basilashvili at the ATP Shanghai Masters on Wednesday. Zverev faced tough resistance but overcame the Georgian 7-5, 6-4 to reach the third round. After hitting a backhand winner during the match, the German tennis ace clenched his fist and let out a mighty roar, scaring the nearby ball boy who jolted backwards looking to defend himself.
The hilarious incident was caught on camera and quickly went viral.
When you celebrate so hard it terrifies the ballkids#RolexSHMasters pic.twitter.com/eryoazYgYD
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) October 10, 2018
The win didn’t come easy for Zverev who defied illness to join Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the next round.
The 21-year-old Zverev fought off a cold — he has had a sore throat and blocked nose for a few days — and the raw power of Basilashvili, winning 7-5, 6-4.
The fourth seed will play Australia’s world-ranked 33 Alex de Minaur.
Zverev said that Basilashvili, who is up to a career-high ranking of 23, “knows how to play, definitely”.
“Probably the hardest-hitting player I have ever played against,” said Zverev.
Meanwhile, Zverev said on Wednesday that he will not play in the new-format Davis Cup finals in November 2019 because he needs the time off, calling the scheduling “crazy”.
“Because in November I do not want to play tennis anymore,” the world number five said.
“I think all the top guys will say the same thing. We have one and a half months off in our season, and that’s end of November and December.
“Making a tournament end of November which is 10 days playing and competing, it’s crazy.
“By the end of the year we are all tired.”
(With AFP Inputs)
