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Why Alexander Zverev was once booed by the crowd during an interview after beating Roger Federer at the ATP Finals

Alexander Zverev has a very strong record at the ATP Finals, having won the prestigious year-end tournament on two separate occasions. The German’s most recent triumph came at the 2021 edition, when he defeated Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev en…

Published: Saturday, 10 October 2026 at 2:00 AM
Why Alexander Zverev was once booed by the crowd during an interview after beating Roger Federer at the ATP Finals
Key Things to Know
  • Alexander Zverev was booed at the 2018 ATP Finals after stopping a rally against Roger Federer due to a hindrance.
  • Zverev halted play down 3-4 in a second-set tiebreak after a ball boy dropped a ball during a rally.
  • The German went on to defeat Federer 7-5, 7-6 before capturing the 2018 tournament title against Novak Djokovic.
The Story in 60 Seconds

Alexander Zverev was booed by fans at London's O2 Arena during his post-match interview after defeating Roger Federer 7-5, 7-6 in the 2018 ATP Finals semifinal. The crowd reacted negatively after Zverev stopped play during a critical second-set tiebreak rally when a ball boy dropped a ball behind Federer, triggering a let under hindrance rules.

Zverev subsequently served an ace on the replayed point and secured the victory before expressing sadness over the crowd's reaction. In his post-match press conference, Federer acknowledged the interruption affected him and described the decision to halt the rally as bold, but confirmed replaying the point was normal once the hindrance was validated.

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