A boy with diabetes became what he wanted to be

For most tennis players, the period between games is an ideal moment to take a break, find new motivation, think about tactics, and sometimes even have a discussion with the umpire. Alexander Zverev is not among them.

One of the best tennis players of today is playing another match between games - one that lasts every day and began when he was just four years old. Glancing at his phone connected to a sensor, checking his blood sugar levels, sometimes administering insulin...

The brilliant German didn't want diabetes to define his life, he learned to live with it and be a top athlete - just as his mother said when they heard from the doctor that they would face another battle in life.

Zverev has been one of the best for years, but 2026 was confirmation that even when he ends his career one day, he will be immortal - after Roland Garros, two nights ago he won his second Grand Slam, the US Open. Ben Shelton He had almost no chance in the final - 6:3, 7:6, 5:7, 6:2.

While addressing the audience in New York, he had a special message for his mother, who is always there for him, but who you will never see in the stands when her son plays.

- I want to address the person who never watches my matches, but who is the most important person in my life. When your four-year-old child is diagnosed with diabetes, and the doctors in the office tell you that life and sports will be very limited for that child, it takes a very strong mother to walk out of that office and say: "My son will be whatever he wants to be," - said Zverev and continued:

- If he wants to be a tennis player, he'll be a tennis player. If he wants to do something else, he'll do something else, but this disease won't define us.

A boy with diabetes followed his dream and 25 years later, he fully realized it.

"I'm happy that we went through all of that together and that we're doing what we're doing today. My mother is the most important and strongest person I know, because it takes an incredibly strong woman to do what she did," Zverev added.

Zverev reached the US Open final for the first time in 2020, but was then defeated by Dominic Tima, there were many more semifinals at Grand Slams after that, two finals, but the cup never ended up in his hands.

This year, there are two - because he played the best tennis, but it was certainly easier for him in the year in which they Carlos Alcaraz i Janik Siner struggled with injuries, and the legendary Novak Đoković He is no longer as powerful due to his age.

- Am I the best in the world? I don't know how to answer that. You have to take everything into account. When we know that Siner is currently injured and Alkaras has just returned to the court, I probably am at this moment. But if the two of them are healthy and both at the peak of their game, maybe I'm not - Zverev modestly replied.

With or without the real Siner and Alcaraz, it doesn't matter. The most important thing right now is that the year was completely in the hands of a guy who deserved his Grand Slam titles much earlier. A boy who wanted to be a champion, and who became one.

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Zverev played in a Grand Slam final in 2026 - he won at Roland Garros and the US Open, while he was defeated at Wimbledon. He reached the semifinals at the Australian Open.

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tennis players who won their first two career Grand Slams in the same year: Jimmy Connors (1974), Guillermo Vilas (1977), Jannick Siner (2024) and Zverev (2026)