The surreal confession from Zverev about Halys: "There is one thing in which he is top-5 on the circuit"

Alexander Zverev continues to advance in an ATP Shanghai 2026 where he seeks to accelerate his rise to the top of the ATP ranking. Each match he wins brings him closer to a number one position that he has already secured, but one he wants to enjoy for as many weeks as possible: thus, the round of 16 is his new goal in a draw that makes him familiar with the feeling of being the first seed.

That said, the German is winning, but by no means convincing. He got himself into a bit of trouble against Yibing Wu a couple of days ago, in a tough and grueling match where he barely managed to come through. Today, waiting on the other side of the net was Quentin Halys, someone he has known for a long time: he was the same man who took a set from him at Roland Garros and usually gives him quite a match, dominating him at certain phases and pushing hard to make the German's defensive wall doubt. The story today was no different, with a Zverev who needed the third set (and a huge drop in adrenaline from the Frenchman at the start of that set) to win... which led him to make a curious, and even surreal, confession in the statements after the match.

Backhand down the line... Trademark shot of Alexander Zverev 🧿 https://t.co/umkCOLEiUN

— Vishal❤️ (@Fans4AlexZverev) October 11, 2026

Zverev praises Halys: "He is top-5 in the circuit in one thing"

Because the Frenchman is a tennis player of great class, good hands, and the ability to change rhythms, but not many fans would place him among the top five in any specific category: he has never won an ATP title and often falls short when players of higher rankings stretch the match. That’s why, while lavishing praise on Quentin, Sascha pulled a statement out of his hat that surprised many:

"For me, on a hard court, Halys is one of the best servers in the world, because he is a guy who hides the direction of his serve very well with his mechanics and ball toss. He can do a lot of things with his serve. His serve plus one is in the top-5 of the entire ATP circuit. He is playing at a sublime level of tennis, and he made things very complicated for me again", confessed the German, rating his opponent’s serve today as one of the most dangerous in the entire circuit.

Zverev didn’t want to elaborate too much when asked about his own level: according to him, slightly better than in his debut against Wu, although he didn’t entirely trust this assessment. "I think my level was better. I also think my opponent today was simply better than the other day. In short, they are different encounters. We both served at an exceptional level today, with many hard hits", noted the German.

Finally, Zverev also talked about his next opponent, in a match that promises fireworks: it is none other than Alexander Bublik, whom he hasn't faced since 2023 and against whom he has a 1-3 losing record. "I think the head-to-head between us is a bit irrelevant considering we haven't faced each other in three years. I expect a tough match, a really hard battle, but I'm very eager for it", confessed Zverev, who was not asked about the discomfort in his right ankle. In two days we will confirm his physical state.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, La surrealista confesión de Zverev sobre Halys: "Hay una cosa en la que es top-5 del circuito"