AIBU for feeling uncomfortable watching Zverev in the Wimbledon final?

Urgh had no idea about the Norwegian player. Glad they lost then.

There was also a Moroccan player who is due to stand trial for rape playing in the WC.

So much for the post-MeToo era

Yes, that miraculously disappeared after a large amount of cash appeared.

He paid off a woman who accused him of raping her.

Isn’t Ronaldo the one who purchases babies? Didn’t realise there were any other allegations, but his casual disregard for women’s reproductive labour and the rights of babies to their mother tells me all I need to know (see also Elton John and Tom Daley).

Zverev has a weird vibe, very victim / manchild like, so i believe the women 100%

Sinner seems like a lovely guy imo

Zverev I don’t like one bit, and don’t want to watch. He may have no criminal convictions but from a common sense pov it would be surprising if these allegations weren’t true (more than one woman, evidence of a nasty temper even in public etc)

Glad Sinner won!

Agree- also don’t like Zverev. Not a Sinner fan either but better him than Zverev. Hope Alcaraz comes back soon!

This was the first Wimbledon men's final in about 20 years that I didn't watch.

Zverev may not have been convicted but I've read his first accuser's full account - and seen the pictures. Given that the abuse allegedly took place while on tour, across multiple jurisdictions - none of them either party's home country - it's incredibly hard to imagine how or even where she'd have filed charges, let alone the he-said-she-said nature of domestic abuse when it comes to legal proof.

Sinner played the system very well with his contamination line - it was enough to demonstrate that it could have happened unintentionally, regardless how how implausible it was that his physio would use a cream with a massive DOPING warning on it, one that's historically been linked to several Italian doping cases, and then massage Sinner's legs gloveless while having an open wound.

If pushed I think cheating at sport is less of a moral stain than beating up your girlfriend, but I wasn't tempted to watch.

Thoroughly enjoyed yesterday's women's final though.

Sinner doped twice for a steroid. His defence was the steroid came from a masseuse's hands. Remarkable that this scenario has never occurred before considering the amount of massages other tennis players must have received during their careers.

And Zrerev (who is known to have a temper) accused by 2 different women of repeated abuse. 1 is thrown out of court due to word against word and the other woman (the mother of his child) is paid off.

Not buying any of this from these 2 players. That is why tennis is in the doldrums at the moment, and it will continue to be with these 2 and an injured Alcaraz.

As for the women's game. 10 different woman in the last 10 Wimbledons win. The 2023 winner banned for 4 years for avoiding a test. Swiatek also banned.

Not a good look for tennis.

It’s obviously true to say that he was never convicted, but he was fined 450,000 euros by a German criminal court for violence against his ex partner following her allegations. He appealed and this was due to go to a full trial before he reached an out of court settlement.

That does not at all suggest that the police found no evidence.

Absolutely no evidence was found against him by police!! False allegations by his ex.

What about the fact that Sinner was caught doping TWICE and never banned?!? What's that all about?!

I was cheering for Zverev as a fantastic example for those with type 1 diabetes (inspirational achievements, esp for those newly diagnosed). Also because he’s raising awareness of the challenges (eg he’s injecting on court and he is allowed a sim-free smartphone on court to manage his condition. A tangential point but this is a highly relevant example for those saying no child ever needs a smartphone in school).

I’m a big tennis fan. I have been very lucky to secure Wimbledon tickets a number of times. I will happily watch any and all matches. Singles, doubles, wheelchair, girls, boys, seniors. If it’s played, I’m watching.

I will not watch that man play. For the first time in about 35 years, I have chosen to not watch the men’s final.

I wonder if you’re my age-50s? My DH keeps going ‘But what about Andre Agassi?!’ when referencing Wimbledon. He’s a name we remember from back in the day. He was saying how he felt that him, John McEnroe etc were characters.

I agree, he’s monotonous as a commentator but I was spoilt forever more following Andrew Cotter’s lockdown episodes with Mabel and Olive!

Had already for no good reason decided to cheer on Sinner. Had no idea about the other bloke, never heard of him before this week, not a huge tennis fan! You can see his aggression: several times he didn’t like the umpire’s calls or a shot from Sinner and the way he turned to his team and shouted was surprising.

I understand why people might not cheer him on, but I doubt he cares!

I didn't watch it either.
Can I just change the subject slightly though?
Was that Andre Agassi commentating the other day? Andre, you're lovely, but what a boring voice.. I almost nodded o.. zzz

That’s true legally but morally I choose to believe the women and since the pay off there’s been no evidence of behaviour change.

I'd been enjoying the match and quietly admiring his diabetes control until I read this thread.......

Absolutely agree OP.

After years of trying I was successful in the Wimbledon ballot and the day we chose to attend i ended up not only watching Serena Williams in her come back match but also Zverev against Blockx. I'm not a Serena fan but I really wanted not to have to watch Zverev. I vocally supported Blockx throughout the game. I refused to applaud Zverev when he won.

I thought this article in the Independent was really interesting
https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/tennis/alexander-zverev-allegations-domestic-abuse-settlement-girlfriend-b3013151.html

Throughout his career all the people in tennis have bent over backwards to indulge Zverev. It annoys me tremendously

Everyone knows it’s innocent until proven guilty. No one is suggesting he be locked up, or even that he be banned from playing (although I personally think a harsher ban for umpire incident would have been good!). Just that they don’t like watching him.

I had no idea, I will switch support to Sinner. Just wish Carlos was here really....don't tell me he's done something awful as well.

IIRC, the drug allegations for Sinner came about for a cream his physiotherapist was treating to use a cut in his own hand. The amounts were very low.

I agree that the case got rushed through but I’m not sure you can hold Sinner accountable for that? The authorities wanted their poster boy playing.

I remember hearing Sinner talk last year after a match and he seems like a genuinely nice guy. Well, as much as you can tell.

I’m not normally one to make excuses for drugs cheats but I think on this occasion it’s not quite as simple as it sounds.

Zverev different kettle of fish. Absolutely vile.

Mind you, tennis doesn’t seem to care about domestic violence. Nick Kyrgios - another player with a temper on the court - pleaded guilty to assaulting his ex partner. He was even given pundit/commentator’s roles…..

There are allegations, but no proof or conviction. We are all innocent until found guilty. He is allowed to play by tennis authorities. There is no reason not to watch him - of course, you might not like him, but that goes for any player.
There is one particular tennis journalist who constantly references this story, but he does it for clicks, quite frankly.
Even if any part of the allegations were true, they go back 6 or 7 years, so let's hope he has learnt from the experience.

I normally love watching tennis but I can’t bring myself to watch this final. I want both of them to lose. See also all the posts about what an amazing human being Cristiano Ronaldo is.

Yanbu. The domestic violence may be unproven but there is clear proof of his violent nature. After a loss at the Mexican open, he repeatedly and violently struck the umpire's chair with his racket - trying to hit the umpire's legs. He was banned for a while.