Zverev survives opening scare at Halle Open, Bublik knocked out early

Alexander Zverev had to work for every inch of his Halle opener, digging out a 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 win over Czech qualifier Vit Kopriva that was far less comfortable than the seed sheet suggested. In the same day’s shock, defending champion Alexander Bublik was sent out early by qualifier Mattia Bellucci, underlining how quickly grass can turn a favorite’s path into a trap.

Zverev’s victory inside heristo-arena took two hours and 10 minutes, and it came in his first grass-court match of 2026, just nine days after he outlasted Flavio Cobolli in five sets to win Roland Garros and capture his first major title. The German said the change of surface and Kopriva’s level made the match difficult, and the numbers backed that up: after dropping the second set, Zverev had to reset before pulling away in the decider.

The result carried a statistical marker as well. Zverev’s 121st ATP 500 match win tied Rafael Nadal for the most since the series began in 2009, giving his survival in Halle more weight than a routine opening-round escape. For a player trying to translate a breakthrough on clay into momentum on grass, the margin mattered almost as much as the result.

Bublik’s exit was the day’s other headline. The 2025 champion entered as one of the names to watch, but Bellucci beat him 7-6(6), 6-1 to end his title defense immediately and reopen a section of the draw that had looked guarded by the defending champion’s presence. That kind of volatility is part of what makes grass so unforgiving, especially when a player’s timing is even slightly off.

The wider Halle slate showed how competitive the field already was. Daniil Medvedev beat Tomás Martín Etcheverry 6-3, 6-4, Hubert Hurkacz upset No. 8 seed Andrey Rublev 6-3, 6-2, Yannick Hanfmann defeated João Fonseca 6-2, 6-2, and Raphael Collignon advanced as well. The updated draw listed Hanfmann as Zverev’s next opponent, a home-country test that will say more about Zverev’s grass readiness than the opener did.

Halle’s Terra Wortmann Open runs from June 15 to 21 on grass in Germany, and Zverev’s narrow escape, paired with Bublik’s collapse, offered the clearest early warning of the week: on this surface, momentum is fragile and vulnerability travels fast.