PARIS: After four hours and 19 minutes, Alexander Zverev collapsed onto the clay, sobbing into his palms. At 29, in his fourth Grand Slam final, he was finally a major champion.
The second-seeded German, who had battled a cocktail of nerves and cramping alongside a spirited Italian opponent, Flavio Cobolli, triumphed 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-1 in the
French Open final. In doing so, he became the first first-time major champion since Jannik Sinner at the 2024 Australian Open.
Zverev, holding the Musketeers Cup, thanked the fans. “This court is so special to me in so many ways. I’ve had the best moments of my life on these courts. I’ve had the worst moment of my life on these courts. I was playing on that corner over there, four years ago with seven broken ligaments and two fractured bones. I lost a Grand Slam final here two years ago. But now finally it’s a happy end,” he said.
Cobolli was all over the clay in the opening set. The 24-year-old Italian, who had never progressed beyond the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam, was broken in his opening service game. He virtually surrendered the set with a series of breaks.
When the world No.14 was preparing to serve for the first time in the second set, a fan shouted ‘credi’ which is ‘believe’ in Italian. When he held serve in the second game, it was the first time in the match that the two players had been level on the scoreboard. Then about an hour into the contest, Zverev faced his first break point of the afternoon in the seventh game. The German saved it in the opening exchange, prevailing in a lengthy rally. But in a game that featured two Zverev double faults, Cobolli eventually secured the break. It proved enough.
While both players enjoyed strong support on the day, Cobolli, who was born in Florence and grew up in Rome, had a block of blue directly behind his box. Friends and family, dressed in shades of Azzurri, stood out in the crowd. In the box were his brother Guglielmo, girlfriend Matilda Galli and footballer Edoardo Bove. Fabio Fognini, one of the player's heroes growing up, was not dressed in blue, but was firmly planted in the section, not far from Stefano Cobolli, Flavio's father and coach.
It was to that corner of the stadium that Cobolli repeatedly turned to when he was in trouble, after producing a good shot, or simply when he needed a burst of energy.
Zverev, his hair tied in a man bun, had the first opportunity to break in the third set. Cobolli fell behind 15-40 in the fourth game, but responded well, saving the second breakpoint by following a second serve to the net. The 6 ft 6’ German, however, remained dominant on serve, losing just one point behind his first delivery throughout the set. In the tenth game, with Cobolli serving to stay in the set, Zverev secured the break when the Italian sent a forehand wide at 30-40.
Cobolli reacted immediately, breaking Zverev in the opening game of the fourth set as the 29-year-old German produced two double faults. The Italian was opening up the court with inventive patterns of play, mixing in delicate backhand drop shots and frequent forays to the net. Yet for all his creativity, his consistency wobbled like panna cotta. Zverev broke back in the sixth game, only for Cobolli to return the favour in the following game.
In the tie-break, with the tension so thick you could have strung a violin from it, Zverev appeared to hold the advantage. The German, who had compiled a 26-2 record in Roland Garros tie-breaks, moved ahead 3-1.
Yet Cobolli, brilliant when chasing and far less assured when protecting a lead, responded by reeling off four consecutive points to edge in front 5-3. At 6-4, he earned two set points. The first slipped away when he overplayed an overhead and sent it wide, but he recovered brilliantly on the next, uncorking a forehand winner on Zverev's serve that levelled the match at two sets apiece.
Zverev, who had been clutching his hamstring during the fourth set, received treatment from the trainer at the changeover. Cobolli, meanwhile, left the court after drawing level, keeping the second seed waiting. As the delay stretched on, Zverev rose from his chair and paced along the baseline like a sentinel on watch, perhaps feeling the first signs of cramp. Zverev broke in the opening game of the decider, and then rallied from 0-30, 30-40 to hold for a 2-0 lead. When he broke again for a 3-0 advantage in the decider, the Italian looked out.
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