Zverev suffered his third Grand Slam final defeat in the men's singles final of the Australian Open just yesterday, having previously finished runners-up at the 2020 US Open and the 2024 French Open. The tournament's second seed lost in straight sets to defending champion and world No. 1 Sinner in a two-hour, 45-minute match. Sinner won his third career Grand Slam title 6-3 7-6(4) 6-3 and maintained his record of winning all Grand Slam finals.

Surprisingly, however, Zverev was interrupted by a screaming spectator during the runner-up speech at the post-match awards ceremony. According to journalist Ben Rothenberg, he witnessed the scene at the ceremony, when a spectator shouted the names of Zverev's ex-girlfriend, Olya Sharipova, and his daughter's mother, Brenda Patya, both of whom had filed domestic violence charges against Zverev.

"Just as Zverev was about to speak, a woman repeatedly shouted: 'Australia supports Olya and Brenda!' Australia supports Olia and Brenda! Breaking the silence of the scene. Rosberg wrote on the social platform X.

In a 2020 interview, Zverev's ex-partner, Olya Sharipova, accused him of physically inflicting physical harm on her, also moderated by journalist Ben Rosberg. A year later, the ATP launched an independent investigation. However, the world No. 2 athlete was not disciplined because investigators felt there was "insufficient evidence to substantiate the public allegations."

Meanwhile, in 2023, Brenda Patya, another of Zverev's ex-girlfriends and mother of his daughter Mayla, accused Zverev of "bodily harm" against her in 2020. The Berlin prosecutor's office issued a criminal penalty order against Zverev and imposed a fine of 450,000 euros.

Zverev appealed this decision, and the trial ended in June 2024. Patya said that she no longer wanted to continue the lawsuit, and the two parties reached an out-of-court settlement with the interests of her daughter first. Zverev, through his defense lawyer, agreed to this settlement only to shorten the proceedings. Zverev is still considered innocent. This settlement does not constitute a finding of guilt or a statement of guilt. The presumption of innocence in law remains in force. Zverev's lawyer wrote in a press release. Zverev was reportedly paid 200,000 euros in compensation after the settlement.

After the game, Zverev did not want to talk about it, refusing to answer questions from reporters, "I believe there will be no more accusations." Nine months without charges? I think [the fan] was the only one in the stadium at the time who believed in it. If so, that's great for her. I think I've done everything I can and I'm not going to bring up this topic again. ”

Zverev has already left all this behind. He was not banned by the ATP after a third-party investigation by the ATP. And journalist Ben Rosenberg, one of the few who has actually spoken to the victims, reported that none of the victims were ever contacted in the ATP investigation, which also angered many fans.(Source: Tennis Home Author: Spark)