Jannik Sinner wins Wimbledon final and banks eyebrow-raising prize money | Tennis | Sport

Jannik Sinner retained his Wimbledon crown and claimed a fifth Grand Slam title with a comeback victory over No.2 seed Alexander Zverev. The Italian came from behind to claim a 6-7 7-6 6-3 6-4 victory – his 100th Grand Slam match win. It’s his 10th successive win over French Open champion Zverev, and Sinner will take home a staggering £3.6m prize cheque for his efforts – £600,000 more than he got for lifting the trophy last year.

The top seed was at risk of bowing out on day one of the tournament when he trailed world No.50 Miomir Kecmanovic by two sets to love. But after wilting in the heat at the recent French Open and losing in five sets, Sinner completed his redemption as he won his first Major title of the season.

For the second year running, it was a meeting of the top two seeds. The defending champion against the most recent Grand Slam winner. The opening three hours were played on a knife-edge, with zero breaks of serve. And for much of the first two sets, Zverev was the better player.

Sinner, 24, never seemed completely comfortable and shanked a forehand while holding a break point in the eighth game of the match. The German won a high-quality tiebreak on his second set point with a forehand winner that landed right in the corner, and continued serving himself out of trouble as the second set went on.

At the two-hour mark, they headed into a second-set tiebreak, and the No.1 seed finally stepped up. Sinner was firing on the forehand side and raced into a 4-0 lead as Zverev leaked errors and only managed to win two points in the breaker. For the first time, the French Open champion no longer looked the most comfortable on the court.

Two hours and 42 minutes into the match, Zverev finally had a look at his first break. But the German, 29, slipped at the back of the court as Sinner saved it with a dropshot, and the Italian rushed over.

Everyone held their breath, remembering what had happened to Zverev in the 2022 French Open semi-finals, when he fell on court and snapped multiple ligaments in his ankle, retiring immediately.

The No.2 seed grabbed his right knee as he got up but was able to play on immediately, and Sinner held serve to move ahead. Whether it was the missed chance or the fall, it felt like a turning point.

Zverev played an error-filled game to hand Sinner the first break of the match and the world No.1 seized his opportunity, serving out the set to love and pumping his fist.

Sinner started the seventh game of set four with a thrilling rally, looking Novak Djokovic-esque as he chased down balls, lobbed Zverev and finished with a dropshot. And he finished it by slapping a forehand winner down the line to break.

Serving for his second Wimbledon title, the Italian gave himself a championship point when he finished a cat-and-mouse rally with a stunning volley that Zverev couldn’t get back into play, and pointed to his box.

And the world No.1 ripped a forehand winner to claim victory before dropping to the court on his back.

EXPRESS SPORT ON FB! Get all the best sports news and much more on our Facebook page