Zverev considers therapy after shock first round Wimbledon exit

Alexander Zverev cut a forlorn figure after he became the highest men's seed to fall in a brutal first round for top players at Wimbledon as the German lost a five-set marathon to France's Arthur Rinderknech.

Third seed Zverev and Rinderknech were locked at one set apiece on Monday when play was stopped but after the resumption on a sultry Centre Court the Frenchman ground out a 7-6(3) 6-7(8) 6-3 6-7(5) 6-4 victory.

It was Zverev's first opening-round defeat at a Grand Slam since Wimbledon in 2019 and leaves him still searching for a first major after 38 attempts.

He appeared to be a lost soul as he tried to come to terms with Tuesday's defeat, explaining that his off-court struggles were now impacting his game.

"I feel very alone out there at times," said Zverev, who lost a third Grand Slam final when he was beaten by Jannik Sinner at Melbourne Park in January. "I struggle mentally. I've been saying that since after the Australian Open. Yeah, just don't know. I'm trying to find ways to get out of this hole. I keep finding myself back in it.

"I just feel generally very, very alone and very lonely... is a feeling that is not very nice. Just never felt that way before.

"I don't think tennis is the problem right now for me. It's something else that I have to find within me at the moment. Again, it's difficult for me to tell you because I don't have the answers right now."

Zverev has had to deal with a number of issues in recent years. He settled an assault case against him for allegedly pushing and strangling his then girlfriend, a charge he denied, last year. He also previously faced allegations of domestic abuse against another former girlfriend, with the ATP halting its investigation due to insufficient evidence.

While he previously managed to block out those distractions, on Tuesday he admitted he might need to undergo counselling to get back into the right headspace.

"Maybe for the first time in my life, I'll probably need it (therapy). I've been through a lot of difficulties in life generally. I've never felt this empty before. Just lacking joy, just lacking joy in everything that I do," said Zverev, who last won a title in April. "It's not necessarily about tennis. Just lacking joy outside of tennis, as well. Even when I'm winning... it's not necessarily a feeling that I used to get where I was happy, over the moon.

"It's just not there right now for me, which, again, is the first time in my life which I'm feeling."

Zverev's mental torment surfaced time and time again against Rinderknech. The German failed to convert any of the nine break points he earned during the contest and also dropped serve when he was 40-0 up.

Despite his own struggles, Zverev did not want to take anything away from his 72nd-ranked conqueror.

"He played a fantastic match. I'm not sure he's ever played a match like that in his life," said the 28-year-old. "I felt like I had him in the fifth... but I was too defensive in some of the opportunities I had. I lost my serve from being 40-0 up... it was my mistake. I had it on my racket.

"Arthur deserved to win today. I didn't break him once, which speaks a lot for him. The fifth set I played okay, just apart from that one stupid game. I let go of the match in the fifth set."

Rinderknech will face Chilean lucky loser Cristian Garin in round two.

Zverev's defeat means 13 of the 32 men's seeds have failed to reach the second round.