Mischa Zverev, the man at his brother’s side – “He’s a very well rested guy” – is challenged in many roles, recently also as a manager.
It was a bitter punchline that Mischa Zverev was far, far away from his brother Alexander at the most memorable moment in the long family tennis history. The younger Zverev brother stormed unswervingly and uncompromisingly to the gold medal at the Olympic ghost games in Tokyo, on the way he even beat the favorite Novak Djokovic out of the race – and Mischa, the eternal companion, sat on the one hand “incredibly proud”, on the other hand “Really frustrated” in a Eurosport TV studio in Munich. “Of course I would have really loved to have been there,” says the 34-year-old, “you want to experience and enjoy a moment like this live.”
No sooner had the tears dried over the touching triumph than the bustling Mischa organized the reception at home again – without further ado, he even had his parents Alexander senior and Irina flown in from Monte Carlo for the first reunion in Munich.
In New York, the two brothers are now reunited as a matter of course – Alexander continues to win on the dazzling Grand Slam stage in the Big Apple with consistency and consolidated self-confidence, on Monday he advanced with a clear three-set victory over the dangerous South Tyrolean Jannik Sinner advance to the quarter-finals and now meets the South African Llyod Harris.
And Misha is the indispensable man at the brother’s side in the mission to win the title, as elsewhere in the recent past – as a sports advisor, opponent observer, business mastermind and “Sascha explainer” (Boris Becker) to the media and fans. Zverev, the elder, can also rely on a network that he himself has established and steadily expanded over the course of almost two decades on the professional tour. “Having Mischa around is an incredible help. It gives me security, ”says Alexander, who after his golden excursion to Tokyo is more than ever in the focus not only of the closer tennis scene.
Mischa is still out and about in the tennis business every now and then. Before he traveled to New York to represent Brother Alexander’s interests there and also to provide assessments of the Grand Slam events for Eurosport, he made two detours to Challenger tournaments in Prague and Lüdenscheid. The 34-year-old gently brings a career to an end that was characterized by a futile attempt at the top of the tennis world, by too high personal and family expectations and by recurring bad luck with injuries. The brilliant technician Mischa says that he has always persevered through all difficulties, thanks above all to his brother: “He always said to me: Don’t give up, believe in yourself.”
“Very well rested type”
In return, Alexander could always rely on the advice and action of his older, more experienced brother – even with the traditionally difficult transition from junior to adult tennis. “We help each other wherever we can. That goes without saying, it’s in our blood, “says Mischa,” I always know exactly what makes Sascha tick and where he has problems. “Mischa also works as a corrective in the not always smooth relationship between coaching father Alexander senior and the youngest Child.
The duo has remained inseparable over the years, but there is still a need for moderation in all kinds of everyday sporting issues. No wonder that Mischa is a regular at her brother’s training and also intervenes to take corrective action.
Since this spring, the older brother’s area of responsibility has become even larger and more demanding. After separating from the management agency Team8, of which Roger Federer is a partner, Mischa now takes care of the main day-to-day business – in addition, Sergej Bubka junior, the son of the former pole vault superstar, acts as a kind of travel manager.
The 34-year-old didn’t stumble into this job, the new family office had long played a role in the Zverev’s deliberations – which is why Mischa also trained in management and marketing. But he could also rely on his own professional experience, on the knowledge of how and with whom which deals can be negotiated. “Nobody can fool him so quickly,” says a German tournament director, “he’s a very well rested guy.”
Focus on the German market
Mischa, who was born in Moscow before the family move to Germany, is currently pursuing a mission with a certain intensity – namely to anchor his brother far more successfully than before in the national tennis scene and in larger German society. The 34-year-old has to drag himself around with the burdens of the past, especially the messed up era under the businessman Patricio Apey, who already wanted to market Alexander Zverev as a world star as a teenager and considered Germany to be a minor matter. “Sascha did not have the right helpers to show his true personality,” said Mischa three months ago to the “tennis magazine”. Now the Olympic victory, also Alexander’s emphasized role as a team player in Tokyo, could have caused a significant change.
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