Why Wimbledon finalist Alexander Zverev is allowed to check his phone during matches
Wimbledon finalist Alexander Zverev has permission to check his phone during matches because of a medical condition.
The French Open winner takes on Jannik Sinner in the 2026 men's final on Centre Court as he looks to add a second Grand Slam to his collection.
Zverev, currently the No.3 player in the world, has 25 ATP Tour singles titles to his name as well as a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The youngest player to debut in the top 20 since Novak Djokovic, Zverev has achieved huge success in his career despite suffering from Type 1 diabetes.
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Zverev was diagnosed at the age of three and announced his condition in 2022. He regularly needs to administer insulin over the course of tournaments.
At the 2023 French Open, there was huge controversy when he was not allowed to inject insulin while on the court.
The International Diabetes Federation were extremely critical and it was then confirmed that he would able to do so.
Though he still requires an injection, advances in technology means that the 29-year-old is allowed to monitor his levels on his phone in matches and will be doing so in breaks at SW19.
"Fortunately for me diabetes has become easier over the past few years with technology," he told the BBC in a new interview.
"I have two phones with me. One is just on court, it doesn't have a SIM card or anything like that. I basically have it throughout the entire game and that's why the umpires allows me to check my phone so I don't have to poke my finger every changeover.
"That's how I do it with this system. Sometimes it doesn't find the signal quick enough and then I do have to poke my finger."
Alexander Zverev had diabetes issue last month after 'false value' reading
Playing at such a high level in tennis, with unbelievably demanding games, can cause fluctuations with Zverev's blood sugar levels and that is where the insulin injections come in.
He uses a glucose sensor to ensure he has adequate levels of insulin but an issue arose in his 6-7(4) 6-4 7-5 Taylor Fritz in the Terra Wortmann Open semi-finals in Halle last month when the reading was wrong for the first time.
Zverev injected too much insulin and it impacted his performance as a result. He compared it to drinking "three and a half litres of Coca Cola".
"My sensor indicated a completely wrong value for my blood sugar," he told reporters after the loss.
"So I injected way too much insulin. I had to absorb nearly 350 grams of sugar. I felt really, really bad.
"The last time I played against Taylor, he was simply the better player. Today, I feel like my tennis was right there, but physically I just wasn’t able to show it.
"I’ve been using this sensor since 2016, and this is the first time it’s shown such a false value. During the match, I drank one glucose gel after another to reach about 300 to 350 grams of sugar.
"It’s like drinking three and a half litres of Coca-Cola during a match. You wouldn’t feel very good either. But me, I had no choice, otherwise I’d have been constantly hypoglycaemic."
Back in Germany, Zverev has a diabetes foundation which aims to help young people with the same medical issue.
Josh Lawless