Alexander Zverev suffers early exit at 2025 Mexican Open

Zverev was upset 6-3, 6-4 by world No 83 Learner Tien in the second round of the ATP 500 tournament in Acapulco.

Zverev, who was the top seed at the Mexican Open, was decisively broken by his 19-year-old American opponent at 3-4 in the opening set.

The 27-year-old German then built a 4-1 lead in the second set before losing five straight games to collapse to a chastening defeat.

Zverev is one of several top players in Acapulco who was reportedly affected by stomach issues or food poisoning, with the draw taking a big hit on Wednesday.

Casper Ruud and Tommy Paul both withdrew before their second round matches, while Holger Rune retired after three games. Alex Michelsen, who lost to Denis Shapovalov, was also apparently impacted.

Despite the circumstances surrounding Zverev's latest defeat, it concluded a disappointing Latin American swing for the German as he missed three big opportunities to win titles and collect a sizeable amount of points.

With Jannik Sinner banned from playing on the ATP Tour until May 4 due to failed doping tests, both Zverev and world No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz have a chance to catch the world No. 1.

In the previous two weeks, Zverev lost in the quarter-finals at both the Argentina Open and the Rio Open - clay-court events at which he was a strong favourite based on ranking.

The three-time major finalist's second round exit in Mexico leaves him with the 8,135 points with which he began the week.

Zverev, who ground out a three-set win over Matteo Arnaldi in the first round, earned 50 points for his second round result. He could have earned a further 450 points had he won the title.

This means Zverev remains 3,195 points adrift of Sinner - a sizeable gap to make up despite the Italian's absence from the tour.

Sinner will drop 1,600 while he is sidelined, which will leave him on 9,730 points when he makes his expected comeback at the Italian Open in May.

Zverev will, therefore, need to surpass this points total by the time of Sinner's return to become world No 1 for the first time.

READ MORE: Nick Kyrgios set to make his return to tennis next month