Zverev says Olympic gold ultimate prize despite chasing maiden major

Alexander Zverev, a top contender at the French Open, declared that his Olympic gold medal holds more significance than any Grand Slam title. Despite being two wins away from a potential maiden major at Roland Garros, the German emphasized the unique difficulty and national pride associated with Olympic success.

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No chance. The gold medal for me is the most difficult thing to win, because you get a chance once every four years.

"The gold medal for me is the most difficult thing to win, because you get a chance once every four years," Zverev said. He added that winning for one's country is a special feeling and he would "never trade" his medal.

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It's special in a way that there are so few people that have done it. I think you do it for your country. You do it for the people back home.

Zverev advanced to the semi-finals with a comfortable victory over Spanish teenager Rafael Jodar. His path to the final has been eased by the withdrawals and early exits of other strong contenders, including Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Novak Djokovic.

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I'll never trade my gold medal for anything, but I wouldn't mind to add a few things to my list as well.

He is set to play either 18-year-old Brazilian Joao Fonseca or Czech Jakub Mensik in the next round. Zverev, however, expressed indifference about his opponent, stating his focus remains solely on his own performance. "If I play well, then I think that's 99 percent of the work," he commented.

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Who do I prefer to play? I don't care at all, to be honest. For me, it doesn't matter.