Alexander Zverev has doubled-down on his denial of domestic abuse allegations from his ex-girlfriend Olga Sharypova.
The German, who has consistently refuted claims—both on social media and in his press conferences this week at the Rolex Paris Masters—that he abused his ex-girlfriend emotionally and physically during their relationship, took the mic after his loss in Sunday’s final loss to Daniil Medvedev to let the world know that he wasn’t going to let the allegations get him down.
“I know that there is going to be a lot of people that right now that are trying to wipe a smile off my face, but under this mask I am smiling brightly, I feel incredible on court, I have the people that I love around me,” he told the viewers.
Sharypova’s allegations first surfaced in the form of an Instagram post on October 28th, in which she claimed that she was a victim of domestic violence.
Days later, Zverev took to social media and said that her accusations were unfounded. The German was asked about the issue this week in Paris, and again after Ben Rothenberg published an interview with Sharypova for Racquet Magazine in which she detailed abuse and shared photographs, and he continued to deny.
With the issue clearly weighing on him, Zverev felt it necessary to tell the world that he wasn’t going to let it bother him.
“I am probably going to be a father very soon, so everything is great in my life,” he said, referring to the other piece of surprise news that came from one of his ex-girlfriends last month. “The people that are trying they can keep trying but I’m still smiling under this mask even though you can’t see.”
Zverev didn’t mention the allegations specifically as he gave his speech, but it is clear that he still vehemently denies any wrongdoing.
He was asked to explain what he meant in his press conference and said the following:
“For a professional athlete there are always going to be people who try to wipe the smile off your face,” he said. “So they can keep trying. I'm still smiling.”