Alexander Zverev is on a four match unbeaten streak on Davis Cup duty with Germany after his latest two victories in their tie against Croatia.
Zverev, who was playing in his first event since winning the US Open, defeated rising stars Matej Dodig and Dino Prizmic in straight sets in Germany’s 3-1 victory against Croatia.
The German is often the star player for his nation at the Davis Cup and he also picked up victories against Jaume Munar and Francisco Cerundolo at last year’s Finals.
You have to go back to 2023 to find the last time Zverev was beaten on Davis Cup duty for Germany, and it was a very big shock for the two-time Grand Slam champion.
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Zverev’s last defeat at the Davis Cup came against Marc-Andrea Huesler of Switzerland, as Germany were upset by the nation in the February qualifiers.
The German had beaten Stan Wawrinka in straight sets a day prior, but he was stunned by Huesler by the same scoreline. That result ensured Switzlerland levelled the tie with Germany in the Davis Cup too.
To further rub salt into the wounds for Zverev, Wawrinka then toppled Daniel Altmaier in the final rubber to ensure Zverev did not go into the next round of the competition.
Huesler, who is now retired, never made it past world No 47 in the ATP Tour rankings and he never set the world alight in men’s tennis, which makes the result even more surprising.
The Swiss star never once won a singles Grand Slam match, having been knocked out of the first round of a major six consecutive times in his career between 2022 and 2023.
He won just one ATP Tour title in his career at the 2022 Sofia Open, an ATP 250 tournament, which saw him defeat a then-20 year old Holger Rune in the final.
Huesler ended his career with a solid, if unremarkable, 32–54 win-loss record, so it remains one of the more surprising defeats of Zverev’s career.
He also only won five matches for Swizterland on Davis Cup duty in singles action, so he was surely delighted that one of those came against a star that would go on to win two Grand Slam titles and reach world No 2 in the ATP Tour rankings.
Huesler’s victory over Zverev in the 2023 Davis Cup was the first and only top five victory of his career. He managed victories against top 10 players such as Fabio Fognini, Nicolas Almagro, and Pablo Carreno Busta, but Zverev was undoubtedly the highest-ranked player he beat in his career.
