“I think Jannik has been the best player in the world for the past 12 months,” Zverev said when he was asked for his thoughts on facing him in the final. “There’s no doubt about it. Won two Grand Slams. Has been very, very stable in those regards.”
Sinner’s rise over that period was sparked, in part, by his five-set loss to Zverev at the 2023 US Open. That bitter late-night defeat led to a res-assessment of his game; a month later, the Italian began a long run of near-invincibility on hard courts, which he remains on today.
During that time, Sinner has proven himself on the biggest stages and against the best opponents. Yet he has done it, for the most part, without having to beat Zverev. They’ve played just once in the last 16 months, on fast hard courts in Cincinnati, and Sinner won by the closest scores imaginable, 7-6(9), 5-7, 7-6(4).
