Zverev, Djokovic crash out of Paris Masters

Manila Times - Nov 5, 2026

PARIS, France — Alexander Zverev said he was “annoyed” at having to justify being world number one as he lost his opening match at the Paris Masters, while 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic also fell on a Wednesday (Thursday in Manila) full of upsets. Carlos Alcaraz avoided a similar fate, however, as the seven-time major winner beat Alex Michelsen, 7-6 (7/4), 6-3, to get his campaign off to a safe start. Long seen as tennis’ nearly-man, 29-year-old Zverev broke his major duck this year by winning the French and US Opens, which propelled him to the top of the ATP rankings for the first time in his career this month. But his reign as world number one got off to a disappointing start as 24th-ranked Lorenzo Musetti eased to a 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 win over the German to reach the third round. “Stress, I don’t know if stress. I was a bit annoyed, to be honest,” Zverev told reporters. “I feel like I’m the only world number one in tennis history that has to explain why it’s okay for me to be world number one, which I find quite difficult, because I think I deserve to be where I am, even though I lost...

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Como scores 9 goals in stunning win at Lens

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