Alexander Zverev 'in tears' after 'worst game' with Madrid title defence looming

Alexander Zverev reportedly broke down in tears after crashing out of the Munich Open in his opening round. The world No 3 was defeated by 18-year-old Holger Rune 6-3 6-2 in what he claimed was his "worst game in years" with his Madrid Open title defence just days away.

Zverev was hoping to turn his season around at home in Germany and said there was still time to make this the "best year of his career" ahead of the tournament but fell at the first hurdle, lasting just 99 minutes on court as the teenage wildcard defeated him 6-3 6-2. The Olympic champion was said to be "in tears" during his post-match press conference, as he apologised for his performance.

"I was incredibly nervous today before the match. It was my first time in Germany in front of a crowd for years," he admitted, before going on to issue an apology for his "worst" performance in years. "I can hardly speak now either. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for the spectators, I'm sorry for the tournament. It was my worst match in the last five, six, seven years."

Analysing what went wrong, the Olympic champion said: "I played without a forehand today. A performance like today's isn't enough even in a tournament in the 250 category." It comes as a concern for Zverev, who is the reigning champion at next week's Madrid Masters and appears to have little confidence going into his title defence, where he is also defending 1,000 of his ranking points.

JUST IN: Nadal fired Djokovic French Open warning as Serb tipped to be 'beast'

Continuing to berate himself for his performance against the world No 70, Zverev said: "There are no excuses. Anyone who finds excuses today is not the smartest person," also confirming he had no health issue affecting his game. "I was symptom-free. A