Zverev acknowledges he made things difficult after surviving Rio opener

Playing his first-ever match at the tournament, the top seed had to save set point on his opponent's serve at 4-5 in the opener, eventually rallying to take it in a tie-break.

That first set featured four breaks of serve and saw Zverev only win 67% of points on his first serve, but he tidied things up in the second set, taking it with a single break in the fifth game.

In his post-match interview, Zverev said: "It was not a great match by me, but he played some good tennis.

"He made it difficult for me. It's surprising because, you know, I actually played really, really well in practice here the whole week, so I hope it's just the first match.

"I lost focus. I lost my shots and my rhythm a little bit. I went for it a bit too much and made it complicated for myself."

Football star in the house! @AlexZverev met @filipeluis after his match in Rio @RioOpenOficial | #RioOpen pic.twitter.com/8B8uZddiJO

— ATP Tour (@atptour) February 19, 2025

Zverev will face Kazakhstan's Alexander Shevchenko in the next round of the competition, where defending champion Sebastian Baez also advanced by overcoming fellow Argentine Roman Andres Burruchaga.

But Brazil's home hope Joao Fonseca, who has enjoyed a breakout campaign to date, fell at the first hurdle against France's Alexandre Muller.

The man of the moment... JOAO FONSECA IS IN THE HOUSE (with his best friend )@RioOpenOficial | #RioOpen pic.twitter.com/MvK8rS42Uj

— ATP Tour (@atptour) February 19, 2025

Fonseca made a nervous and error-strewn start, and despite recovering in the second set, his 34 unforced errors proved insurmountable in a 6-1 7-6 (7-4) defeat.

Having triumphed against an opponent who enjoyed vocal support at the Jockey Club Brasileiro, Muller said: "It was tough to play against such a great player and perhaps 5,000 [fans], but I'm very happy to get the victory today.

"I was feeling calm for half the match. I didn't take my chances to take the break in the second set, and then he was playing better and better. I played a great tie-break to finish."

Zverev was not at his ruthless best on Tuesday, but his victory did improve his record against players outside the top 20 of the ATP rankings to 22-1 since the 2023 French Open.