Alexander Zverev’s honest message to Taylor Fritz after Stuttgart final loss: ‘Stay away from me’

This Sunday, Taylor Fritz captured his first title of the year with a 6–3, 7–6 win over Alexander Zverev in the final of the BOSS Open in Stuttgart. The result also allowed the American to climb in the ATP Rankings.

“I’m back,” Fritz wrote on the camera after the match in Germany, referencing a return to form following several disappointing performances in recent months. “It was not so great a clay season, so to come here and start the grass season off perfectly, I am super happy to get the title and to do it here,” he said, according to the official ATP Tour website.

The win also reinforced Fritz’s recent dominance over Zverev. The head-to-head now stands at 8–5 in Fritz’s favor, including five straight wins. However, Sunday’s clash marked the most significant matchup between the two yet, as it was the first time they had faced off in a championship match.

“I’m (expletive) tired of him,” Zverev joked about Fritz after the match, according to Tennis.com. “Please stay away from me… Don’t come to Germany anymore,” he added, drawing laughter from the crowd.

Alexander Zverev lost his third final in Stuttgart

Fritz hits several milestones

The Stuttgart title is Taylor Fritz’s first of the season and the ninth of his professional career. Grass courts have proven especially favorable for him — four of those nine trophies have come on that surface: three in Eastbourne and now one in Stuttgart. That ties him with Matteo Berrettini and Nicolas Mahut for the second-most grass court titles among active players, trailing only Novak Djokovic (8).

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But that’s not all. Fritz’s dominant run at the BOSS Open included an extremely rare achievement: he didn’t lose serve in any of his matches throughout the tournament — a feat not seen since October 2024, when Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard won Basel with the same stat.

With Sunday’s victory, Fritz will also move up one spot in the ATP Rankings, reclaiming No. 4 from Jack Draper. He now sits behind only Zverev (No. 3), Carlos Alcaraz (No. 2), and Jannik Sinner (No. 1).

What’s next for Fritz and Zverev?

The grass-court season is building toward its ultimate goal: Wimbledon, which begins on June 30. Leading up to that, the ATP Tour’s top players will continue competing in tune-up events to find their rhythm on grass. Taylor Fritz will head to the Queen’s Club Championships, where he opens against Corentin Moutet on Tuesday. Alexander Zverev will compete in the Halle Open, beginning his campaign against Marcos Giron, also on Tuesday.