Sinner v Zverev: the rematch that could define a Wimbledon era

Jannik Sinner has not lost to Alexander Zverev in nine matches. The last six were straight-sets victories. Now they meet on grass for the first time, with the Wimbledon title on the line. The world No 1, 24, is one win away from his fifth grand slam crown after dismantling Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals. Zverev, the second seed, ended a long wait for a major at last month’s French Open and appears liberated by that breakthrough. “Once you win a major you know how to do it and you feel like you can do it again,” the 29-year-old German said. The final begins at 4pm BST on Sunday 12 July, broadcast live on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website in the UK. It will be their first meeting on grass, but Sinner holds a psychological edge: he beat Zverev in straight sets in the 2025 Australian Open final, their only previous grand slam title match. Zverev, however, arrives on a high after ending the run of British wildcard Arthur Fery in the semi-finals. “We saw how aggressive he's playing, serving very big,” Zverev said of Sinner. “He is a tough player to play against. He was before but now even more because of this confidence he has. His confidence is good. He's very relaxed on court at the moment. But it's going to be very, very tough, very different than all the other matches we have played.” For Sinner, a second consecutive Wimbledon title would cement his status as the dominant force in men’s tennis. For Zverev, a victory would make it back-to-back grand slams for the first time in his career. The weight of history and form leans one way – but Zverev believes improvement is simpler than psychology. “If you improve as a player and you make the decision as a player to improve, you're going to do better in tournaments,” he said. Sunday will test that theory.