Top seed Jannik Sinner successfully defended his Wimbledon title with a hard-fought 6-7(7), 7-6(2), 6-3, 6-4 victory over Alexander Zverev in a gripping final on Sunday, claiming his fifth Grand Slam title. The 24-year-old Italian, who became the first Italian to win the Wimbledon men's singles title last year, is now one of only 10 men in the Open Era to successfully defend the championship.
The win also extended Sinner's dominance over Zverev, marking his 10th consecutive victory over the German. Zverev, playing in his maiden Wimbledon final shortly after winning the French Open, produced one of his finest performances on grass. The second seed served brilliantly, won the opening-set tiebreak and ended Sinner's run of 14 consecutive sets won against him.
However, Sinner raised his level in the second-set tiebreak before the match swung decisively in the third set. At 3-3, Zverev slipped while chasing a drop shot on his first break point of the match. Although he continued, Sinner capitalised by breaking serve for the first time and never relinquished control.
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Sinner remained composed in the fourth set, breaking for a 4-3 lead before producing a stunning 23-shot rally to earn championship point and sealing victory with a forehand winner after three hours and 46 minutes. The triumph marked his 100th Grand Slam match win and further underlined his status as the world's top-ranked player after another dominant Wimbledon campaign.
Despite suffering a fourth defeat in a Grand Slam final, Zverev completed the strongest major season of his career by winning the French Open and reaching his first Wimbledon final, results that will move him up to World No. 2.
With a fifth Grand Slam title before turning 25, Sinner has strengthened his position alongside Carlos Alcaraz as one of the defining players of the post-Big Three era. Their rivalry has increasingly shaped the men's game, with the pair now sharing the sport's biggest titles over the past few seasons.
More significantly, Sinner's latest triumph places him in elite company. Few players in the Open Era have amassed five Grand Slam titles before their 25th birthday, and his achievements at the same age compare favourably with those of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
While matching the career records of the Big Three remains a long-term challenge, Sinner has established a trajectory that invites comparisons with some of the greatest players in tennis history.
Sinner turns 25 on Aug. 16, 2026 - riughly in a month's time. So, here's a look at Sinner's Grand Slam achievements before he turns 25, and how they compare with those of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic at the same stage of their careers.
Sinner's Grand Slam Record Vs The Big Three (Before Each Turned 25) & Alcaraz
| Grand Slams | Jannik Sinner | Roger Federer | Rafael Nadal | Novak Djokovic | Carlos Alcaraz (23) |
| Australian Open | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Roland Garros | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| Wimbledon | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| US Open | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Total | 5 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 7 |
*Carlos Alcaraz is only 23 years of age.
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