(Berlin) The Berlin district court has fined tennis player Alexander Zverev 450,000 euros ($660,000) for domestic violence, an order he has appealed against.
At the request of the Berlin public prosecutor’s office, the court “issued a criminal order on October 2 against professional tennis player Alexander Zverev”, suspected of “assault and battery”, according to a press release.
The court imposes a fine of 450,000 euros on him.
“The accused is accused of having, in May 2020 in Berlin, physically mistreated a woman during an argument and of having damaged her health.”
The court did not cite the plaintiff’s no. But in a separate press release, the player’s defenders reacted to the court’s announcement and cited the name of Brenda Patea, his former partner.
Alexander Zverev “contests the accusation and has objected to the order,” the court said, which paves the way for an appearance.
“The competent department of the Tiergarten District Court will first rehear the parties […]and then, in all likelihood, set a date for the trial,” he explained.
The Schertz Bergmann law firm, which represents the player, said in a statement published on X that the facts as described by Mme Patea “and which are the only basis for the prescription have already been rejected by a medical report”.
In January, the ATP, the association which manages the international men’s tennis circuit, closed an investigation into allegations of domestic violence against Mr. Zverev, this time involving a female tennis player, for lack of sufficient evidence.
It was opened following accusations of violence brought against him at the end of 2020 by Olga Sharypova, his former partner.
Zverev (9e world) is taking part this week in the Masters 1000 at Paris-Bercy, where he barely beat Monday at 1er turn the Hungarian Marton Fucsovics (52e) 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.