The newest ATP world No. 1 lost his first match since officially claiming the top ranking, and afterward used his press conference to voice his frustration about the scrutiny he’s faced.

Zverev Falls to Musetti in Paris Opener

Alexander Zverev lost 7-6(5), 6-2 to Lorenzo Musetti in the second round of the Paris Masters on Wednesday. This made him the first player to lose his first match as world No. 1 in straight sets. Zverev, who became the 30th man to reach No. 1 on Monday, looked poised to take control of the first set, but things quickly fell apart from there.

Zverev led 5-2 in the tiebreak, but Musetti managed to win the next five points to take the opener. Musetti, currently ranked No. 24, held all 10 of his service games and broke Zverev twice in the second set. The Italian hit 29 winners to Zverev’s 25 and made 12 unforced errors to 21 for the German. This was Musetti’s fourth win in six meetings with Zverev, and his second against a world No. 1.

Zverev’s Post-Match Reaction

At his press conference, Zverev didn’t make any excuses for his performance in the match, saying, “To simplify it, he played really good and I played really bad.” He even called it one of his worst matches of the last couple of months. “I was bad. It’s quite simple. There’s no excuses,” said Zverev. He also mentioned that the court was “very, very fast,” but clarified by saying that this is exactly how the court should be for the indoor season.

He then addressed what had been bothering him since Monday: “I was a bit annoyed, to be honest, the last couple of days,” Zverev said. “Achieving the world No. 1 status is something that I think every player dreams of. But then, I feel like I’m the only world No. 1 in tennis history that has to explain why it’s ok for me to be world No. 1,” he continued. Zverev explained that the scrutiny has been quite difficult for him, and that despite the criticism, he still deserves to be world No. 1.

Scrutiny Behind the Frustration

Zverev’s No. 1 ranking has come with plenty of questions and critiques this season, primarily due to the absence of two of his biggest competitors for large portions of the year. He won the French Open and the US Open this year, his first two Grand Slam titles, and leads the tour with 65 wins. Despite his immense success, critics have pointed out that Zverev has only beaten three top-10 players this season and benefited from the absences of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.

Meanwhile, others have defended the German player, arguing that reaching world No. 1 is difficult regardless of who’s on tour and that the ranking is well deserved. Zverev also responded to recent comments by Boris Becker, who suggested that fans mostly supported his opponents in his three Grand Slam finals this year. “I think he’s just looking for anything at the moment to put me down a bit,” Zverev said.

The Season Isn’t Over for Zverev

Zverev has already clinched the year-end No. 1 ranking, but he has the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin ahead of him. He also plans to play in the Davis Cup Final 8, where he said he wants to win the title with Germany. On Monday, he said he looks forward to Alcaraz and Sinner returning to full health. “You have to play the best season for an entire year,” he said.