Yardbarker
x
Jannik Sinner first Italian to win three major titles
Jannik Sinner. Mike Frey-Imagn Images

Jannik Sinner first Italian to win three major titles

World No. 1 Jannik Sinner Sunday became the first Italian to capture a third major title with a convincing 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 win over Alexander Zverev in the final of the 2025 Australian Open.

Sinner extended his hard-court majors streak to 21-0, dating back to his wins at last year's Australian Open and U.S. Open. The 23-year-old is only the fifth player in history to win three consecutive hard-court slams, joining John McEnroe, Ivan Lendl, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the exclusive list of all-time greats. 

Sinner's sheer dominance of Zverev is best exemplified by the fact that he didn't face a single break point in his straight sets win, becoming only the third player since 2000 to win a final as convincingly. 

During the second set, Zverev was on the verge of securing a breakpoint when he went up 30-15 in the 10th game with a 5-4 lead. Just then, Sinner fired two bullet backhand winners to stun the German, holding serve before winning the subsequent tiebreaker relatively easily. At many points in the match, Zverev shrugged his head in disbelief, looking like a man who had run out of answers against the mighty Italian.

After his loss, Zverev gladly admitted he wasn't on Sinner's level. The loss marked the German's third straight loss in a major final.

Sinner consoled disheartened Zverev at the podium and urged his opponent to "keep believing" in his pursuit of an elusive major. He also thanked his coaching staff for scripting his unreal run on the ATP Tour over the last 18 months.  

"We worked a lot to be in this position and it is an amazing feeling to share this moment with all of you," Sinner said to his team, via ATP Tour. "I know a part of the team is at home and my family, but it is amazing to share these feelings with you. I know Darren [Cahill] it is probably your last Australian Open as a coach and I am very, very happy to share this trophy with you. Everything started a little bit when I changed my combination of coaches and physio, I am very happy to have you all here."

Sinner hasn't lost a match since losing to Carlos Alcaraz in the final of the Beijing Open last October. Remarkably, he's 47-3 since becoming World No. 1 on June 10, 2024. His 94 percent win/loss percentage is tied for the best in the Open Era for a World No. 1 after 50 matches.

Sai Mohan

A veteran sportswriter based in Portugal, Sai covers the NBA for Yardbarker and a few local news outlets. He had the honor of covering sporting events across four different continents as a newspaper reporter. Some of his all-time favorite athletes include Mike Tyson, Larry Bird, Luís Figo, Ayrton Senna and Steffi Graf.

More must-reads:

Customize Your Newsletter

Yardbarker +

Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!