Less than a year ago, Jordan Thompson won his first ATP Tour title in Los Cabos and in the semi-finals, he won a thrilling three-setter against Alexander Zverev. That remains one of the biggest victories of the Australian’s career, but it is not what he thinks about when pondering their Lexus ATP Head2Head rivalry before their meeting on Monday in the third round of the Miami Open presented by Itau.
“[I] kind of look back at the last one, when he chopped me one and one. Wasn't my best day at the office, and he had a good day,” Thompson said. “But I think we've played each other four times. Two of them have been six in the third, one has been straightforward the other way, and one was more straightforward than the other. But I hope I played better than the last time we played.”
That most recent clash came last August in Montreal, where Zverev won 59 per cent of his return points according to Infosys ATP Stats.
“Australian Open finalist, Grand Slam finalist. You could go on all day about what a great player Sascha is,” the Australian said.
Thompson is a formidable foe, which is why he was able to defeat Zverev, now the No. 2 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, twice. Last November the 30-year-old reached a career-high World No. 26. How will he approach the showdown?
“With a great mental attitude. As I said, last time I copped a whooping, so I want to make sure that doesn't happen again,” Thompson said. “But sometimes, when he catches fire, there's nothing really you can do. He's got a great, great serve. Doesn't miss many groundies, moves well, great returner, so my work's cut out for me.”
It is safe to say Thompson will be ready to compete. Whether on or off the court, the World No. 37 enjoys a good battle.
“Doesn't matter what I'm doing, I want to win, whether I'll be playing marbles, FIFA, Smash Brothers, Mario Kart, game of cards,” Thompson said. “I want to win everything, so I'm always, always competing.”
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