Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Djokovic falls in Rome, gets Agassi as coach
ROME — Alexander Zverev signaled his anticipated arrival among the tennis elite by defeating Novak Djokovic 6-4, 6-3 Sunday to win the Italian Open in Rome.
Zverev, 20, became the youngest player to win a Masters 1000 event since Djokovic won in Miami a decade ago at 19.
“I don’t know what to say,” Zverev said during the trophy presentation. “Coming in to this week I never thought I could be standing here in the finals or getting this trophy.”
Zverev broke in the very first game and was never really challenged by Djokovic, who appeared drained after having to win two matches Saturday to reach the final.
Djokovic committed nearly twice as many unforced errors as Zverev — 27 to 14.
The match lasted 1 hour, 21 minutes.
Afterward, Djokovic announced that Andre Agassi will coach him at the French Open, which starts Sunday.
“We are both excited to work together and see where it takes us,” Djokovic said. “We don’t have any long-term commitment. It’s just us trying to get to know each other in Paris a little bit.”
The title will move Zverev up to a career-high No. 10 in the rankings today and place him among the contenders for Roland Garros. It also adds credibility to the belief by many tennis experts that Zverev will reach No. 1 some day.
“If I have only half of the career Novak has had, I’ll be fine,” Zverev said when asked if he can follow in Djokovic’s footsteps.
Earlier Sunday, Elina Svitolina surged to No. 1 in the season-long rankings race by beating Simona Halep 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 in the women’s final.
It was a tour-best fourth title this year for Svitolina and the most prestigious trophy of her young career. The 22-year-old Ukrainian also leads the tour with 31 match victories this season.
The fourth-ranked Halep was in full control and serving for the first set at 5-2 when she rolled her right ankle while sliding over what appeared to be a small hole in the Foro Italico stadium court.