PARIS: Alexander Zverev’s long wait for a Grand Slam title finally came to end as the German defeated Italian Flavio Cobolli at the 2026 Roland Garros final.
Zverev defeated Cobolli in a five set thriller 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7, 6-1 to win his maiden Grand Slam title. It was a sweet victory for the 29-year-old, who in three previous attempts in the final had failed to cross the finish line.
Zverev made a dominant start to the contest, breaking Cobolli's serve three times to race through the opening set 6-1. The Italian struggled with his serve and found it difficult to cope with Zverev's aggressive baseline game.
Cobolli, playing in his first Grand Slam final, responded strongly in the second set. The 23-year-old raised his level, serving more effectively and taking his opportunities to claim the set 6-4 and draw level in the match.
The third set was closely contested, with both players holding firm under pressure. Zverev, however, produced the decisive breakthrough at the crucial stage and edged ahead by winning the set 6-4 to move within one set of the title.
Cobolli refused to give up and looked set to force a deciding fifth set when he opened up a 5-4 lead in the fourth. But Zverev showed his experience and composure, fighting back with a series of powerful groundstrokes, including a superb backhand winner to level at 5-5.
The fourth set went into a tie-breaker, with Cobolli rallying to win the set 7-6.
The German showed his true colours in the fifth set, breaking Cobolli's resistance by going 3-0 up before sealing a 6-1 victory and with it the French Open title. Agencies
List of records Zverev set by winning French Open:
1 - Zverev is the first German man to win the French Open in the Open Era.
3 - Third German Grand Slam men’s champion in Open Era after Becker (6 times) and Stich (1991 Wimbledon).
3 - Third man born in 1990s to win a Grand Slam title, joining Dominic Thiem (1993; won 2020 US Open) and Daniil Medvedev (1996; won 2021 US Open).
30 - Zverev is the first German man in 30 years to win a Major (Boris Becker at 1996 Australian Open).
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