{"id":400378,"date":"2024-06-06T03:45:11","date_gmt":"2024-06-06T03:45:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=400378"},"modified":"2024-06-06T04:04:48","modified_gmt":"2024-06-06T04:04:48","slug":"deeply-grim-cloud-hanging-over-demon-slayer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=400378","title":{"rendered":"'Deeply grim' cloud hanging over Demon slayer"},"content":{"rendered":"

A post-match press conference after reaching a fourth straight French Open<\/a> semi-final \ufeffwould usually hold a celebratory vibe.<\/p>\n

But a dark cloud continued to hover over \ufeffAlexander Zverev after his 6-4, 7-6, 6-4 quarter-final defeat of Australia's Alex de Minaur.<\/a><\/p>\n

The contrasts between the pair's reputations couldn't be starker.<\/p>\n

Watch Roland-Garros 2024 live and exclusively free on Nine and<\/strong><\/em> 9Now<\/strong><\/em><\/a>. Plus four courts in 4K UHD on<\/strong><\/em> Stan Sport<\/strong><\/em><\/a>, the home of grand slam tennis<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"Zverev<\/p>\n

De Minaur is a fan favourite \ufeffat Roland-Garros, forming a wholesome friendship with a 14-year-old French super fan named Paul<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Zverev, meanwhile, is competing in Paris as a court proceeding continues in Germany, connected to accusations of physical abuse by a former girlfriend.<\/p>\n

The prosecution accuses Zverev of pushing his ex-partner against a wall and choking her during an argument in Berlin in 2020.<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Blues skipper burned by 'curious' coach call<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Maroons great in hot water over Suaalii sideline spray<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong> Brave Demon bundled out by clinical world No.4<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

\"Alexander<\/p>\n

Zverev, who has previously denied the allegations, said he never thought it was a possibility he wouldn't be able to play because of the court case.<\/p>\n

"No, they made it very clear from the beginning that I don't have to be there," Zverev said after beating de Minaur.<\/p>\n

"I think everything is going accordingly. Everything is going OK from my side and from my point of view. There's nothing else to say."<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/BenRothenberg\/status\/1797771561002512657?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

Leading tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg is dismayed that Zverev has been allowed to continue playing, calling it "deeply grim."\ufeff<\/p>\n

Tournament director Amelie Mauresmo has defended Zverev's right to participate.<\/p>\n

"As long as the trial isn't finished and there isn't a decision, he's considered innocent and so that's why he's allowed to be part of the draw," Mauresmo said.<\/p>\n

\"Demon's<\/p>\n

De Minaur was gracious in defeat after letting a 4-0 lead in the second set \ufefftiebreak slip away.<\/p>\n

"He just was so gallant in the way that he fought," Casey Dellacqua said on Stan Sport's Grand Slam Daily<\/em>.<\/p>\n

"He did try and take a lot of risks. He tried to be more aggressive. He tried to step into the court and be brave – I think that's what he was trying to do. But he just came up against a better opponent who served really well and Zverev was the better player on the day…<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/StanSportAU\/status\/1798469750500016475?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

"The ability for Zverev to walk up to the line and know he can pull out a big first serve has got to help. He's able to finish off points a little bit quicker with that serve."<\/p>\n

Zverev extended his winning streak to 11 matches, including a title on clay at the Italian Open last month, and his victory moves him into a matchup against two time Roland-Garros runner-up Casper Ruud.<\/p>\n

Zverev is trying to win his first grand slam title.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

"I'm happy to be in another semi-final. Hopefully, I can win one," he said.<\/p>\n

Victory could have been far more difficult than it was.<\/p>\n

De Minaur was one point from tying things at a set apiece while Zverev served down 6-5 in the second.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/StanSportAU\/status\/1798557963122270529?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

But Zverev fought that off and in the ensuing tiebreaker, de Minaur pulled out to a 4-0 lead, before Zverev collected seven of the next eight points.<\/p>\n

The third set appeared to shift Zverev's way for good when de Minaur double faulted to get broken and fall behind 4-2.<\/p>\n

When Zverev served for the victory at 5-3, however, de Minaur used a delicate drop volley to break and extend the match.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/StanSportAU\/status\/1798425651193512281?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw<\/a><\/p>\n

It wouldn't last much longer, because Zverev broke right back to end it.<\/p>\n

All in all, it was not a particularly clean match: they combined for more than twice as many unforced errors (101) as winners (48).<\/p>\n

"Had my chances. Probably should have taken that second set," de Minaur said after the end of his best run at the French Open.<\/p>\n

"I left my heart out there. Did everything I could."\ufeff<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A post-match press conference after reaching a fourth straight French Open semi-final \ufeffwould usually hold a celebratory vibe. But a dark cloud continued to hover […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":400380,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400378"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=400378"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400378\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":400384,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/400378\/revisions\/400384"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/400380"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=400378"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=400378"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=400378"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}