After losing his fourth-round match against Jannik Sinner at the French Open on Sunday, Alexander Zverev said he played while feeling “completely sick.”
“I can’t really breathe, as you can hear by my voice. I had fever as well,” Zverev said, per Julio Vegas of USA Today. “Yeah, I’m not in the best physical state, I would say. I think that had a little bit of an effect on the match today.”
Zverev, the tournament’s No. 6 seed, lost in four sets, 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 3-6.
Tournament officials said Zverev did not share the details of his symptoms with doctors when arrived to play, as required by the Open’s coronavirus protocols. But, it is not clear if Zverev contracted the virus.
“Zverev is up-to-date on his tests, which have all been negative,” the French Tennis Federation said in a statement on Sunday. “Today he received a reminder for his next test, to be carried out within five days of the previous results. He did not consult the tournament doctors before his match.”
Zverev, who began feeling sick on Friday night, said he regretted taking the court against Sinner.
“To be honest, I warmed up today: I shouldn’t have played,” Zverev said. “I was hoping maybe for a three-set win or something like that, but I knew from the beginning that it wasn’t going to be easy.”
Sinner will face 12-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals on Tuesday.
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