Alexander Zverev celebrates after winning the French Open, his fourth grand slam final and his first victory. The second seed beat Italy's Flavio Cobolli 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-1 in an excruciatingly tense five-set psychodrama to lift his first major title.
A Long-Awaited Triumph
Two weeks of nerves and tension across one of the most chaotic men's grand slam tournaments in recent memory came to an appropriate conclusion. Zverev, who had won at every other level including Masters 1000 events, the ATP Finals, and an Olympic gold medal, finally captured the biggest prize that had always evaded him after losing in all three of his previous major finals.
From the moment Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic were eliminated in consecutive days, with Carlos Alcaraz absent due to injury, Zverev was clearly the best player remaining. Cobolli, the world No. 14, was the only top-25 player in his path. This was an opportunity the German could not afford to let pass.
Emotional Victory Speech
Addressing his team, Zverev said: "We've been through injuries. We've been through heartbreak. We've been through losses. We've been losers at times in the important moments. But at the end of the day, we're grand slam champions now and that's what counts."
A year on from one of the greatest finals between Alcaraz and Sinner, this edition at times made for a painful watch as nerves struck both sides, drawing out fearful, erratic tennis. Zverev was a picture of tension and discomfort throughout the second half of the match, as his troubles with his forehand and second serve resurfaced. He even cramped due to the emotional effort of trying to pull himself to victory. However, thrown into his first grand slam final, Cobolli felt the moment even more intensely. The German drew on his first serve and experience to drag himself through the fifth set to the victory he had envisioned for so long.
Reflecting on the court, Zverev said: "This court is so special to me in so many ways. I've had the best moments of my life on this court, I had the worst moment of my life on this court. I was laying in that corner over there 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."
Controversy Lingers
The German remains a popular figure at most tournaments, and the Philippe-Chatrier crowd cheerfully received his victory, but this result is uncomfortable for many fans. Zverev has been accused of domestic violence by two former partners, Olya Sharypova and Brenda Patea. He has repeatedly denied both claims. The second accusation led to a domestic violence case in Berlin, which began during the 2024 French Open, where he reached his second grand slam final. The two parties eventually settled out of court. During the trophy ceremony of his third grand slam final at the Australian Open last year, Zverev was heckled by an audience member shouting: "Australia believes Olya and Brenda."
Cobolli's Brave Effort
Considering how the last few days had gone for Cobolli, who reached his first grand slam final without striking a ball in the semi-final after his compatriot Matteo Arnaldi withdrew due to a virus, the underdog was understandably tense from the start. He was completely uncompetitive in the opening set.
The start of a new set allowed Cobolli to regroup. As he began to find his range with his forehand while courageously approaching the net and using his drop shot well, Zverev's familiar forehand and second serve problems resurfaced. He double-faulted twice at 3-3 and then shanked a forehand wide on break point. But Zverev recovered in set three, completely outserving Cobolli. While the German rolled through his service games without difficulty, his opponent landed 52% of first serves and was constantly under pressure. Down 5-4, he finally crumbled, spraying three wild unforced errors in four points from 30-0 up to lose the set.
It seemed as if Zverev might definitively pull away, but the approaching finish line only invited fear. For much of the fourth set, he looked overwhelmed by nerves. He was there for the taking, but Cobolli also struggled. As he served for the fourth set at 5-4, his first-serve figures had fallen to 39%, and he duly found himself in a tie-break.
Down 3-1 in the tie-break, Cobolli roared back and ended his brilliant last stand with a searing running forehand winner to make it two sets all. As he pumped his fists and shouted to his team, he had put himself within a set of victory. However, his energy reserves were exhausted. The Italian completely flatlined at the beginning of the final set, cheaply handing over his opening service game, and he never found his way back.
