By Martyn Herman
LONDON (Reuters) – Germany’s Alexander Zverev asked Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola to come back to Bayern Munich on Saturday after the Spaniard watched him reach the fourth round of Wimbledon.
Fourth seed Zverev was watched by a Royal Box full of sporting greats including Guardiola as he battled past Cameron Norrie, winning the first two sets 6-4 and then surviving a 32-point third-set tiebreak to triumph.
Speaking on Centre Court, Zverev said the sight of the former Bayern Munich manager in the front row of the Royal Box had made him nervous, although his play was dazzling.
“For me and for all tennis players it’s an honour to play on this beautiful Centre Court and in front of the Royal Box, we had so many sporting legends today,” Zverev said.
“For me Pep Guardiola – when I saw Pep I got so nervous for a few games. Thanks a lot for coming, it’s a privilege to play. Last thing – Bayern Munich needs a coach. If you’re tired of football you can coach me on a tennis court any time.”
Guardiola, who led Manchester City to an unprecedented fourth successive Premier League title last season, was joined by the likes of Indian cricket maestro Sachin Tendulkar, British cycling great Chris Hoy and Olympic heptathlon gold medallist Jessica Ennis-Hill.
Middle Saturday is the traditional day at Wimbledon for sports stars past and present to attend the Royal Box.
Zverev, a soccer fan and diehard Bayern Munich supporter, got to meet Guardiola immediately after the match with the City manager asking him about the knee injury he sustained in the second set against Norrie.
Olympic champion Zverev sounded optimistic about that as he looked forward to trying to reach the quarter-finals for the first time.
Guardiola may well be missing from the Royal Box later with England playing Switzerland in the Euro 2024 quarter-finals.
Bayern Munich recently hired Vincent Kompany, Guardiola’s old captain at Manchester City, as coach after their 11-year reign as Bundesliga champions was ended by Bayer Leverkusen.
Guardiola coached Bayern from 2013-16.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Alison Williams)
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