Germany’s Alexander Zverev on Sunday defeated Khachanov of the Russian Olympic Committee to win gold at the Tokyo Olympics. The 24-year-old emerged victorious in straight sets 6-3, 6-1. This win makes him the first German to win a singles men’s Olympic gold since 1988. 

Currently ranked World No. 5, Zverev beat the current Wimbledon, French Open and Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals. 

Born in Hamburg, on April 20, 1997, Zverev had tennis in his genes. Both his parents were professional tennis players and represented the Soviet Union. His older brother Mischa, who was born nearly a decade earlier, is a professional tennis player as well.  

Rising through the ranks, Zverev, at the age of 18, started turning heads in the tennis fraternity when he upset then World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the Boodles Challenge exhibition in 2015.

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Since then Zverev’s career trajectory has seen a hike. His breakthrough season came in 2017-18, when he won two ATP Masters 1000 titles, defeating Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer in the finals.

Last year, after cruising into the US Open finals, Zverev failed to lay his hands on the silverware as he was defeated by Dominic Thiem 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 3-7 in a final-set tiebreaker.

However, his hunger for titles is evident as he has managed to reach the semifinals in this year’s Roland Garros, the farthest he has come in the tournament in his career. Earlier in the year, he won his fourth Masters 1000 title at the Madrid Open.

Filled with talent, Zverev has been touted by tennis’ Big Three — Nadal, Djokovic and Roger Federer — as one of their potential successors. 

However, in October 2020, Olga Sharypova, Zverev’s former girlfriend, accused the tennis sensation of physically and emotionally abusing her over the course of their relationship. But the German was quick to deny the allegations.