Jannik Sinner has been hailed as the 'new Novak Djokovic' after successfully defending his Wimbledon title with a hard-fought 6-7 (7-9), 7-6 (7-2), 6-3, 6-4 victory over Alexander Zverev in the final at the All England Club.
Sinner Joins Elite Club with Back-to-Back Titles
The Italian world number one became only the tenth man in history to win consecutive Wimbledon titles. The victory also marked Sinner's fifth Grand Slam crown, leaving the French Open as the only major missing from his collection. Sinner, who turns 25 next month, now holds two Wimbledon titles alongside trophies from the Australian Open and US Open.
Zverev, who rose to world number two after the tournament, entered his first Wimbledon final in confident form. The German had won his maiden Grand Slam at the French Open in June and dropped just two sets en route to the final at SW19. That run included a straight-sets victory over British wildcard Arthur Fery. However, Zverev struggled against Sinner's relentless pressure despite taking the first set via a tie-break.
Bartoli: 'We Have Seen the New Novak'
Former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli praised Sinner's performance on BBC Radio 5 Live, noting that the win was his 100th at Grand Slam level. 'By winning today, Jannik is getting his 100th win at Grand Slam level,' Bartoli said. 'I think we have seen the new Novak for the next 10-15 years. The way he is able to weather the storm when he had to, come up with an extraordinary shot when he had to, it reminds me so much of Novak Djokovic.'
Former British number one Tim Henman also lauded Sinner's title defence. 'A worthy champion, an incredible defence of his title. As the great players do, they find the way to get the win,' Henman said. 'Sinner has got better and better as he's gone on through this tournament. His performance in the semi-final against Djokovic and today have been truly world class.'
Remarkable Serve Statistics
Remarkably, Sinner's serve was not broken in either the final against Zverev or his semi-final victory over 24-time Grand Slam champion and seven-time Wimbledon winner Novak Djokovic. This stat underlined his dominance on grass throughout the fortnight.
Zverev's Reaction
Zverev, who has now lost ten consecutive matches against Sinner, joked in his on-court interview: 'First of all, Jannik, I don't really like you any more! But he showed once again why he is the best player in the world. It was great to share the Centre Court with you on finals weekend. A great honour to be here. It didn't go my way but congratulations to you first of all.'
He also acknowledged Sinner's team: 'Also in relation to Jannik's team, who have been with him for many years now. You are number one now but you were outside the top 10 when you started and you are all the way to being Grand Slam champions and world number one. It is a team effort, Jannik will be first to admit it, so congratulations to you as well.'
Reflecting on his own journey, Zverev added: 'To my team, we had pretty good two months I would say, even though we lost this final. We had an amazing two months and we came into Wimbledon having never reached the quarter-final, and we reached a first final. At 29, this is the first time I believed I could win this trophy, so thank you to you guys as well.'
Sinner's Tribute and Future Goals
Sinner, who took advantage of Carlos Alcaraz's absence due to a wrist injury, paid tribute to Zverev during the trophy ceremony. 'This feels amazing,' Sinner said. 'Sascha, I would like to start with you and your whole team and family. You reached one of your main goals; winning Grand Slams. You made it happen in Paris. Today you were so, so close. If you keep playing like this I'm sure you're going to have this one at home as well. So amazing, keep going.'
He also acknowledged Zverev's ambition to become world number one: 'I know another goal is for you to become number one in the world. You are very close. I have to be very careful now! But congrats.'
The victory cements Sinner's status as the dominant force in men's tennis, with comparisons to Djokovic growing louder after his 100th Grand Slam match win and fifth major title.
