Zverev Still Paris's Favourite

A match on Court Philippe-Chatrier did not end as it began. Alexander Zverev, who beat Dutch surprise Jesper de Jong 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-1 in 2 hours 14 minutes in the fourth round of Roland Garros 2026, lost the first set in a tiebreak and turned back from the edge of a major shock to advance to the quarter-finals. The 29-year-old German star continues his journey as the tournament's biggest favourite after Iga Swiatek's defeat at Suzanne-Lenglen on Sunday and Coco Gauff's upset on Saturday.

The match began like a Dutch story from the first set. De Jong, one of the surprise names of the season, despite being ranked 106 in the world, wrote a 12-match marathon all the way to the RG main draw quarter-final. He took the first set 7-3 in the tiebreak and brought Chatrier's spectators to their feet. But the second seed began to find his strength after that set. In the second set the breaks were exchanged, but Zverev came over the net after saving his serve twice in the critical 4-4 game, and the set closed 6-4. In the third set the Dutchman could barely lift his arms anymore; the German closed out the match with a 6-1 rotation.

The court statistics tell Zverev's comeback story. He won a total of 100 points; De Jong stayed at 66 (a 34-point difference). In first serve accuracy the German was ahead of his opponent at 75 percent, but the real difference was in the first serve winning percentage: against Zverev's 81 percent, De Jong could only hold a 67 percent ratio. The gap is bigger in second serve numbers: Zverev 62 percent, De Jong 33 percent. The match-ending point also summed up the scenario — after the German's second serve at 171 km/h, in a four-shot exchange, De Jong's backhand could not clear the net.

Zverev's Paris story is the season's hottest side narrative. He lost the 2024 Roland Garros final to Carlos Alcaraz in five sets; he dropped the 2025 Australian Open final to Jannik Sinner. At 29, despite carrying 24 ATP single titles and a 548-232 W/L in his career, only one dream has not let go of the German: a Grand Slam. Clay is his favourite surface, and in this tournament, where the Roland Garros throne is empty, more than a million fans are now putting pressure on him. Twenty-seven years have passed since Andre Agassi's last German men's Grand Slam victory in 1999; for Zverev, that number gets heavier every year.

This season has been up and down for the German. Starting 2026 as world No. 2, Zverev struggled with back injuries in March-April; he regained his confidence by winning Munich Open, and fell to Alcaraz in the Rome semi-final. When he came to Paris, his target was clear: to leave not as a player waiting for the throne to empty, but as one who takes and goes. The Roland Garros bracket placing him on Sinner's side of the draw raises the favourite atmosphere on Sunday; barring a surprise, his road to the semi-final looks open.

In the quarter-final, Zverev will face 19-year-old surprise Spaniard Rafael Jodar, who knocked out Pablo Carreno Busta in five sets on Sunday. The two players never having met before may be an advantage for Jodar in the future; but Zverev's experience advantage and his world No. 3 status cannot be ignored. The two players will meet on Tuesday or Wednesday on Court Philippe-Chatrier or Suzanne-Lenglen.

With this result, Roland Garros 2026 is again a paradox: on the women's side, two consecutive champions (Swiatek and Gauff) were eliminated early; in the men's, Zverev — a world top player without a trophy — faces his destiny. In his long-running relationship with Paris, perhaps this is the German's most fitting opportunity: being the favourite in a tournament where the throne is empty.

Image: rolandgarros.com