Jannik Sinner won the world's most prestigious tennis tournament for the first time on Sunday: The 23-year-old South Tyrolean dethroned recent two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final, also avenging his painful final defeat five weeks ago in Paris. Sinner won 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 after 3:04 hours to claim his fourth Grand Slam title. Sinner, who also won the Australian Open last January, consolidated his lead in the world rankings over Alcaraz and now holds a 3,430-point advantage over the Spaniard. Alcaraz, meanwhile, missed out on a Wimbledon hat trick and a sixth Grand Slam title. Sinner cashed a check for 3 million pounds (3.47 million euros), while Alcaraz received just under half.
"I'm very emotional. I had a very tough loss in Paris," Sinner recalled in his acceptance speech, reflecting on the three match points he lost at the French Open. He also explained what happened afterward. "No matter how you lose, you have to understand what you did wrong and accept the defeat. That's one of the reasons why I have this trophy," said Sinner, whose parents and brother attended the ceremony. With great respect, he also congratulated Alcaraz on his great tournament and "especially for the player you are." "You'll win this trophy many times, but you've already won twice." He had previously addressed the fans. "It's hard to lose, even though I was in the final.
Jannik, you deserve the trophy, I'm very happy for you." The two spoke of a good friendship off the court and a good rivalry on the court. Alcaraz, whose winning streak was snapped in his 25th match, also explicitly thanked Spanish King Felipe VI. Sinner Improved After Losing the First Set In the first set, Sinner capitalized on his first break point to make it 3-2 and then took a 4-2 lead, but in the eighth game, after two unforced errors from the South Tyrolean, Alcaraz broke back. Sinner, who was weakening at this stage, didn't win a game after 4-2, having to give up serve again in the 44th minute to make it 4-6.
The second half made it clear that both players were under great stress. Sinner immediately broke at 1-0 and soon led 4-2 again. Sinner missed the opportunity to make it 5-2 on Alcaraz's serve after his two double faults en suite. Both players failed to show the expected level. Many of his own errors characterized their play, but Sinner now played a little more aggressively. "Relax!" was shouted several times in Spanish from Alcaraz's box, a testament to his nervousness. Sinner maintained his advantage this time and equalized after 92 minutes at 6:4 after sets.
A champagne cork had caused laughter in the second set, which Sinner narrowly missed on the court when he wanted to serve. He removed the cork himself. "It's a very expensive tournament," he joked later. Many celebrities watched Sinner's victory against Prince William and Kate, Princess of Wales, as well as acting stars such as Nicole Kidman, Robin Wright, and Matthew McConaughey, but the match remained open. Sinner, whose body language was now clearly more positive, deservedly broke at 5:4.
The number of serves also showed a significant increase, so Sinner also served for a 2:1 set lead. Sinner's confidence grew stronger and, consequently, he took Alcaraz's serve again to make it 2:1. Just as Sinner looked set for a 4-3 victory on his own serve, Alcaraz suddenly had two chances to cut the lead, and his fans were already believing in a comeback. But Sinner remained calm and made it 5-3. He converted his second match point for a well-deserved victory.
