ATP Tour

Diallo on facing Zverev, a new coaching team & why 'margins are getting smaller'

Gabriel Diallo has not practised with or competed against World No. 3 Alexander Zverev, who has been a presence at the top of the ATP Tour since before the Canadian was in college. But the 24-year-old is flying higher than ever and excited to step on the court inside Rod Laver Arena Sunday to take on the two-time Nitto ATP Finals champion.

“I'm very grateful that I'm in this position to play in a Slam, one of the biggest courts against one of the best players in the world. So it's all a bonus,” Diallo told ATPTour.com. “We train hard and we work hard to position ourselves to play in those kind of matches. We start playing tennis, to play those kind of matches. So I'm really excited and looking forward to playing.”

One year ago, Zverev made the final at Melbourne Park for the first time after reaching the semi-finals on two previous occasions. The German has failed to reach the fourth round just once since 2019.

“He's very consistent. First of all, just from the back and in terms of a performance standpoint, he's been in the Top 10 for I don't know how many years. And then, obviously in terms of his game, he's got a great serve, great backhand, solid forehand,” Diallo said. “So I'm going to have to get creative. I'm going to have to take it to him if I want to give myself some chances to win. At the end of the day, I think for me it's another match, it's another learning experience.”

Diallo is currently doing plenty of learning. He split with longtime coach Martin Laurendeau and began working with Jonas Bjorkman and Johan Ortegren.

“I’ve got the full Swedish delegation now,” Diallo said, cracking a laugh. “I'm excited to see where that's going to take me, and very grateful for the past five years I had with Marty. We had an amazing run since I was in college, all the way to now. Someone that will always stay very close to me and that has a special place in my heart.”

While Ortegren was also a professional tennis player, Bjorkman stands out for his efforts reaching No. 4 in the PIF ATP Rankings and No. 1 in doubles.

“It's been very good. He just came to Adelaide, so it was the first time I saw him there. But yeah, so far it's been very good. Learning a lot,” Diallo said. “He has a lot of expertise and as a player, he was where I aspire to be. So just a great opportunity to learn from him and work with him and excited to see where it's going to take me.”

The World No. 1 is on a good path. A year ago he was No. 86 and competing in the Australian Open main draw for the first time. Now Diallo is one of the most dangerous unseeded players in Melbourne, fresh off a season in which he lifted the trophy in ‘s-Hertogenbosch and made his first ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final in Madrid.

“The goal was to finish inside the Top 50, and I managed to accomplish that. I had some very good results. Won my first title, big quarters in the Masters,” Diallo said. “So just [want to] keep building on this, carrying this momentum throughout 2026, keep improving. We flagged the things that I need to improve in order to make the next jump and the details and the margins are getting smaller and smaller, but those are the things that are going to make a big difference.”