Alexander Zverev did not stay diplomatic when a reporter raised the Trinity Rodman rumor on Thursday, the day before the Laver Cup opened at the O2 Arena in London.
“What? Of course not. I love Ben and his dad. Whoever said that is an idiot,” Zverev told reporters at the tournament’s media session.
The rumor traces back to Zverev’s on-court speech at the US Open final on 13 September, when the German beat Rodman’s boyfriend Ben Shelton in four sets. Rodman had played earlier that day for the Washington Spirit, who lost 3-0 at home to Boston Legacy FC in the NWSL, before she traveled up to New York in time to reach Shelton’s player box for the closing sets.
The shout-out that went viral
Zverev singled Rodman out from the podium.
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“Trinity, I thought you had a game today, no?” he said in his winner’s speech. “Well done to you as well. You’re the lucky charm. Not today, but usually.”
Rodman was seen laughing and nodding in the box. Clips traveled quickly on social media, where users read the shout-out as a flirt. That is the reading Zverev has now shut down.
Who Trinity Rodman is
Rodman is a 24-year-old forward for the Washington Spirit and the US women’s national team. She was the No. 2 pick in the 2021 NWSL Draft at 18, the youngest player selected at the time, and she scored the extra-time winner against Japan in the quarterfinal on the US women’s run to gold at the Paris 2024 Olympics, Yahoo Sports laid out in a profile that framed her rise well beyond the tennis-adjacent spotlight. The final was won 1-0 against Brazil.
She is the daughter of five-time NBA champion Dennis Rodman, though she has been public about a distant relationship with him.
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“I love to have my last name and when I say Rodman, it’s not my dad’s name, it’s my name,” she said on the Call Her Daddy podcast.
Zverev and Shelton are both on court in London this weekend. Team Europe, captained by Yannick Noah, plays Team World, captained by Andre Agassi, in the ninth edition of the Laver Cup at the O2 Arena through Sunday, 27 September, with matches worth one point on Friday, two on Saturday and three on Sunday.
