On December 30th, Beijing time, in the Perth division E group of the United Cup group stage, China faced Germany. Due to the earlier announcement of Zheng Qinwen's withdrawal from the competition, China was at a disadvantage in terms of lineup comparison. In the first men's singles match, Zhang Zhizhen challenged Zverev. Although Zhang is a top 50 player in the world and the leader of Chinese men's tennis, his opponent Zverev is a world-class player, an Olympic gold medalist in men's singles, a two-time Grand Slam runner-up, and a two-time year-end finals champion, currently ranked second in the world! Surprisingly, Zhang Zhizhen created a surprise in the first set by not allowing his opponent to get a single break point, breaking twice himself, and winning the first set with a score of 6-2! Zverev found his form in the second set, winning the set 6-0. In the decisive set, Zverev won again with a score of 6-2. Ultimately, Zhang Zhizhen lost after initially winning, narrowly missing a major upset, with a final score of 1-2 against Zverev. In the past, the highest-ranked player Zhang Zhizhen has defeated is Ruud and Medvedev: In the 2023 US Open, Zhang Zhizhen fought hard for five sets, turning the tables 3-2 against Ruud, who was then ranked fifth in the world; in the 2024 Halle grass court tournament, Zhang Zhizhen played three full sets, defeating Medvedev 2-1, with Medvedev also ranked fifth at the time. That means Zhang Zhizhen has beaten top-five players twice. In this match, Zhang Zhizhen faced Zverev, who is…