Jannik Sinner beats Alexander Zverev in 3 sets for his second Australian Open title in a row

MELBOURNE, Australia — There’s all sorts of ways beyond merely the score to measure just how dominant Jannik Sinner was while outplaying and frustrating Alexander Zverev during the 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-3 victory Sunday that earned the 23-year-old Italian a second consecutive Australian Open championship.

The zero break points Sinner faced. Or the 10 he accumulated. The 27-13 advantage in points that lasted at least nine strokes. Or the way Sinner accumulated more winners, 32 to 25, and fewer unforced errors, 27 to 45. The way Sinner won 10 of 13 points that ended with him at the net. Or the way he only let Zverev go 14 of 27 in that category, frequently zipping passing shots out of reach.

And here is one more bit of evidence: Listen to what Zverev told Sinner during the on-court trophy ceremony: “You’re the best player in the world, by far. I was hoping that I could be more of a competitor today, but you’re just too good. It’s as simple as that.”

That’s coming from the guy who is ranked No. 2 behind Sinner, who has held the No. 1 spot since last June and is not showing any signs of relinquishing it. This was the first Australian Open final between the men at No. 1 and No. 2 since 2019, when No. 1 Novak Djokovic defeated No. 2 Rafael Nadal — also in straight sets.

“It’s amazing,” Sinner said, “to achieve these things.”

That includes being the youngest man to leave Melbourne Park with the trophy two years in a row since Jim Courier in 1992-93 and the first man since Nadal at the French Open in 2005 and 2006 to follow up his first Grand Slam title by repeating as the champion at the same tournament a year later.

Since the start of 2024, Sinner has won three of the five major tournaments, including the U.S. Open in September, and his record in that span is 80-6 with a total of nine tournament titles. His current unbeaten run covers 21 matches.

The only thing that’s clouded the past 12 months for Sinner, it seems, is a doping case in which he was cleared by a ruling that was appealed by the World Anti-Doping Agency. He tested positive for a trace amount of an anabolic steroid twice last March but blamed it on an accidental exposure involving two members of his team who have since been fired. Sinner initially was exonerated in August; a hearing in the WADA appeal is scheduled for April.

While Sinner became the eighth man in the Open era (which began in 1968) to start his career 3-0 in Grand Slam finals, Zverev is the seventh to be 0-3, adding this loss to those at the 2020 U.S. Open and the 2024 French Open.

Those earlier setbacks both came in five sets. This contest was not that close. Not at all.

“We’re trying to do all the right work,” Zverev said. “I’m just not good enough.”

Just before Zverev began speaking into a microphone during the trophy ceremony, a voice cried out from the stands, making reference to two of the player’s ex-girlfriends who accused him of physical abuse.

During the match, there truly was only one moment that felt as if it contained a hint of tension. It came when Zverev was two points from owning the second set, leading it 5-4 and at love-30 on Sinner’s serve. But a break point — and a set point — never arrived.

Zverev dropped the next four points, making it 5-all, and Sinner emerged with the ensuing tiebreaker. No surprise there: He went 4-0 in those set-deciders over the past two weeks and has grabbed 16 of his past 18.

A year ago, Sinner went through a lot more trouble to earn his first Slam, needing to get past Novak Djokovic — who quit one set into his semifinal against Zverev on Friday because of a torn hamstring — first, before erasing a two-set deficit in the final against 2021 U.S. Open champion Daniil Medvedev.

This time, the 6-foot-3 (1.91-meter) Sinner applied pressure with an all-around style that does not really appear to have any holes as his sneakers squeak from a sprint to a slide that often nearly ends in the splits and he uses his long limbs to deliver deep groundstrokes.

On this night, he proved superior in just about every meaningful way, other than aces.

Returning serves from Zverev that reached 138 mph (223 kph), Sinner got the lone break of the opening set with a passing shot for a 5-4 lead. Zverev walked back behind the baseline, shaking his head while talking to his father and brother, who were seated in the front row of their courtside coaches’ box.

There was more negative body language after Sinner served out that set at love to continue his crescendo, the final note an ace at 120 mph (194 kph). Zverev trudged to his bench, shoulders sagging, and dropped his racket on an equipment bag, a gesture that conveyed annoyance more than anger. Later, it became the latter: Zverev cracked one racket on the court and used a racket to hit another on the sideline.

Understandable, given what Sinner was doing on the other side of the net.