There was carnage in the men’s singles draw throughout the French Open and more than a few unexpected results were also produced at Wimbledon, but in the end it’s No. 1 vs. No. 2 for the title.
Top seed Jannik Sinner and second seed Alexander Zverev will be squaring off for the 15th time in their careers when they battle for the trophy at the All-England Club on Sunday afternoon. Sinner is dominating the head-to-head series 10-4 and has won nine matches in a row at Zverev’s expense after losing four of their first five meetings. They last faced each other at a Grand Slam in the 2025 Australian Open final, which the Italian won easily 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-3.
There is at least some good news for Zverev. At 29 years old, he is playing by far the best tennis of his career and captured his long-awaited first major title last month in Paris — capitalizing on a huge opportunity after an ill Sinner lost in the second round. Full steam in ahead in London, Zverev is back in another slam final thanks to victories over Alexander Blockx, Valentin Royer, Marcos Giron, Jiri Lehecka, Taylor Fritz, and Arthur Fery. The German has won consecutive matches in straight sets heading into the championship match.
Sinner was pushed to five sets right away by Miomir Kecmanovic, coming back from two sets to one down to survive that first-round tussle 4-6, 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-2, 6-3. The 24-year-old mostly sleepwalked from there, not required to get out of second gear while dismissing Nuno Borges, Jenson Brooksby, Shintaro Mochizuki, and Jan-Lennard Struff in straight sets. Once the competition level ratcheted up in the form of Novak Djokovic on semifinal Friday, Sinner looked like the version of himself that won all five Masters 1000 events in March, April, and May by destroying the 24-time Grand Slam winner 6-4, 6-4, 6-4.
Since the Aussie Open (where he lost to Djokovic in the semis), only one physical issue has stopped Sinner. And until Carlos Alcaraz comes back, that is probably the only thing that can stop him. It will be hot on Sunday in London (87 degrees) — but with minimal humidity and much shorter points than what the French Open yields, conditions should not be a factor.
Zverev may be able to serve his way into one tiebreaker and win it, but count on Sinner going back-to-back at the All-England Club.
Pick: Sinner in 4
Congrats to both players. Both made fantastic speeches.
Zverev deserves a huge amount of credit for pushing Sinner so hard. Definitely can win another slam.
Carrots must be happy!!😀
I’ve been critical of Zverev but I warmed to him today. Showed a lot of class.
Yes. And thanks for the balanced view. Did you see him injecting himself with Insulin (I guess) . Really tough illness
No I didn’t see that( probably grabbing a coffee) but did see him checking glucose levels. It must be very psychologically and emotionally draining having an illness like that so young, especially if you are a top athlete. I wasn’t really aware of his illness in the past and it does change how I see him.
I liked his speech a lot which was very articulate and gracious.
I do reckon he will win another slam now.
The way hes improved his game esp the forehand, on his ‘worst’ surface , hes turned his career around
yep
agreed. will win another one.
For sure.
Was a great final, well done Sinner, GS number 5 and counting
Can’t wait for the USO, and hopefully Alcaraz will be back by then
he will not
Sinner is the first player to win Wimbledon without dropping serve in the SF and Final since Roger Federer achieved this feat back in 2017.
Alcaraz could be back by US Open but I doubt he will be a title contender straight away.
almost zero chance of playing the USO
Sorry Federer actually lost serve once in the SF. So now the question is who was the last player before Sinner to win Wimbledon without dropping serve in the SF and Final.
Found the Answer. The last player to win Wimbledon without dropping serve in the SF and Final was Roger Federer all the way back in 2003. He saved both BPs against Roddick in the SF and didn’t face any BPs in the final.
Had no idea he had diabetes, credit to him for handling the condition so well, as a tennis player, can’t be easy