Alexander Zverev expected to miss 6-8 weeks, Novak Djokovic to inherit top seeding at Wimbledon
Alexander Zverev has pulled out of next week's ATP tournament in Halle as he begins his recovery from the ankle injury he suffered at Roland-Garros.
The German tore several lateral ligaments in his ankle in the second set of his semi final against eventual champion Rafael Nadal.
French newspaper L'Equipe reports Zverev will be sidelined for 6-8 weeks due to the injury.
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That will rule him out of Wimbledon, which is due to begin on June 27.
That will come as a bitter blow for the 25-year-old, who was likely to be the top seed at SW19. Zverev will climb to a career high number two in the world rankings next week, behind Daniil Medvedev.
With Russian and Belarussian players banned from Wimbledon over the invasion of Ukraine, Zverev would have been the number one seed in the men's draw.
Alexander Zverev clutches his ankle in agony during his semi final against Rafael Nadal in Paris. Getty
That honour is instead expected to go to three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic, who will drop to number three in the rankings next week, following his quarter final loss at Roland-Garros.
If Zverev is out of action for eight weeks, he would return in time for the Montreal Masters and Cincinnati Masters in August, the two big lead-up tournaments ahead of the US Open on August 29.
The German was a finalist in New York in 2020, going down to Dominic Thiem in five sets, and made the semi finals last year, where he was beaten by Djokovic, also in five sets.
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