Zverev French Open Victory: First Grand Slam Title in 2026

Historic Success for Germany

At the same time, he is the first German to win a Grand Slam title in the men's singles since Boris Becker in Melbourne in 1996. Overall, Zverev is the fifth German player, male or female, to win a Grand Slam singles title, after Michael Stich, Steffi Graf, Boris Becker, and Angelique Kerber. Among the women, compatriot Angelique Kerber won at Wimbledon in 2018.

Zverev demonstrated his class right from the early stages of the final. Zverev himself usually won his matches convincingly. In the final, however, Cobolli was a strong opponent after some initial nerves. In the first set, Zverev broke the Italian early and won the opening set clearly at 6:1.

Cobolli, the world number 14, raised his level in the second set and forced the set equalizer with 6:4. In the third set, Cobolli had little to offer against Zverev, so the German took the lead again at 6:4. In the decisive set, Cobolli had little to offer against Zverev.

Course of the Final

The fourth set developed into a hard-fought duel. After a total of four breaks, the outcome had to be decided in a tiebreak. In the first, Cobolli inexplicably put a smash into the tramlines, but then made the set equalizer perfect with a forehand passing shot. Cobolli had thus managed the set equalizer with 7:5 in the tiebreak and extended the match into a deciding fifth set.

From the end of the fourth set onwards, Zverev increasingly struggled with muscular problems. His right thigh was treated during a break. Despite the physical limitations, the Hamburg tennis professional Alexander Zverev kept the upper hand in the fifth set.

In the decisive set, Zverev broke Cobolli twice in a row and quickly pulled ahead to 3:0. In the end, he won the fifth set convincingly at 6:1 and converted his second match point after Cobolli had hit a smash over the net.

Cobolli as Surprise Finalist

After the match point, Zverev fell on his back into the sand and sobbed, covered his face with his hands, and then kissed the Coupe des Mousquetaires. He then consoled his defeated opponent Cobolli at the net. At the trophy ceremony, Zverev turned to his box: Wir waren eine Zeit lang auch Verlierer in den entscheidenden Momenten, aber am Ende des Tages sind wir jetzt Grand-Slam-Champions - und das ist das, was zählt.

Boris Becker, three-time Wimbledon winner, commented on the action as an expert for Eurosport. He said about his compatriot's game: Er hat das mehr als verdient. About Cobolli, Becker said: Nicht zu glauben, wie Cobolli jetzt aufdreht. Becker had won his last Grand Slam title in Melbourne in 1996.

Background and Setbacks

Even before the tournament, Zverev was considered a co-favorite because his strongest competitors had to withdraw due to injury or were eliminated early in the tournament. World number one Jannik Sinner was eliminated surprisingly early after a battle in the heat, and Novak Djokovic was out shortly afterward. Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz had withdrawn before the start of the tournament due to an injury to his right wrist.

Cobolli had reached the final as an unseeded player after his semifinal opponent Matteo Arnaldi had to withdraw due to illness. The 24-year-old had previously made it past the quarterfinals at only his second Grand Slam tournament and was fighting to become the first Italian men's winner at Roland Garros since Adriano Panatta 50 years ago. Panatta had been asked to present the Coupe des Mousquetaires to mark the anniversary of his 1976 triumph. Both players, Cobolli and Panatta, come from the same Roman tennis club. Regardless of the final, Cobolli will rise into the top ten of the world rankings on Monday.

For Zverev, following the defeats in 2020 in New York against Dominic Thiem, 2024 in Paris against Carlos Alcaraz, and 2025 in Melbourne against Jannik Sinner, this was his first Grand Slam triumph. With the success in Paris, he joins an elite group of players who won their first major title on their fourth attempt: Andre Agassi, Goran Ivanisevic, and Dominic Thiem. Agassi later won a total of eight Grand Slam titles, Ivanisevic triumphed at Wimbledon in 2001, and Thiem in New York in 2020.

Reactions and Outlook

The French Open title is the 25th tournament victory of Zverev's career. Throughout the entire tournament, he had dropped only three sets. He had already won the Olympic gold medal in singles in Tokyo in 2021. Zverev has long been part of the absolute world elite in tennis. In 2021, he became Olympic champion. Only a title at one of the four most important tournaments in the world had eluded him so far. He had previously stood in three finals and lost each time.

The women's tournament had been won the day before by 19-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva. In the final, she defeated Poland's Maja Chwalinska clearly in two sets. Thus, both singles titles at the 2026 French Open went to players who compete for Russia and Germany. This news was broadcast on 07.06.2026 on the Deutschlandfunk program.

Against the backdrop of Zverev's past, the final had also attracted attention beyond the sport. After the lost Australian Open final in 2025, a person in the stadium had called out the names of two ex-girlfriends who had accused Zverev of physical assault. Proceedings had been settled through an agreement between German public prosecutors, Zverev's lawyers, and his former partner. The ATP Tour had reviewed a further allegation and found insufficient evidence.

Zverev had emphasized before the tournament that he did not want to go down in history as the best player without a Grand Slam title. Ich wäre lieber der schlechteste Spieler, der schon ein Grand Slam gewinnen konnte. At the trophy ceremony, he said: Jetzt ist es endlich ein Happy End. The spectators in the sold-out Court Philippe Chatrier then experienced a constant rollercoaster of emotions. On the stand was the inscription: victory belongs to the most tenacious - der Sieg gehört dem Hartnäckigsten.