Zverev provokes: "It's worse for the top 10".

This clay-court season is not going well for the world number 5. Beaten in the last 16 in Monte-Carlo (by Tsitsipas, 7-5, 7-6) then in the quarters in Munich (by Garin, 6-4, 6-4), the German did it again in Madrid. Faced with Francisco Cerundolo (21st) in the last 16, he was unable to find a solution, losing logically (6-3, 6-4).

When asked about this new and worrying disappointment, the Hamburg native showed a certain amount of cheek. He explained that the ATP's reform of the Masters 1000 (now played over 12 days) favours lower-ranked players to the detriment of the world's top 10: "This ten-day format is much better for players ranked between 50th and 100th in the world, because they now have the chance to play these important tournaments, but it's worse for the top ten. In fact, we spend a lot more time on tour and the days off between matches aren't really rest days but simply recovery days." (Interview at the press conference).

A statement that is likely to be much talked about...