John McEnroe points an accusing finger at Alexander Zverev after Jannik Sinner drubbing

John McEnroe believes Alexander Zverev didn’t do enough to test Jannik Sinner in a one-side Australian Open final.
The world No 1 beat Alexander Zverev 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-3 on Rod Laver Arena, as he became the first Italian to win three Grand Slam singles titles since a defeat by Zverev in the fourth round of the US Open in 2023
Zverev never looked like repeating that outcome in this match, with seven-time Grand Slam champion McEnroe surprised that the German was unable to turn the contest into a more physical match.
Sinner struggled with illness during this tournament and suffered from cramping in his semi-final against Ben Shelton, with McEnroe suggesting Zverev failed to test the champion’s physical issues.
“I thought Zverev was going to make this a war of attrition and try and test Sinner who cramped two days ago and was sick four days ago. He wasn’t able to do that so you have to give Sinner a tonne of credit,” McEnroe told Eurosport.
“He was as good as he had to be. He is definitely by far the best player on hard courts. I am not sure you would throw him that quite yet on grass or clay. He is a little bit of a work in progress, he is still young.
“He did get into Zverev’s head, I’m not denying that, but I thought he was going to make this a war of attrition and try to test Sinner.
“He crammed two days ago (against Shelton) and was sick four days ago. He wasn’t able to do that. You have to give Jannik a lot of credit and he just took Zverev out of the match.
“He is an awesome player. There’s no question about it. The way he gets in and out of the corners is unbelievable. He puts tons of pressure on opponents, that’s clear. And he did get in Zverev’s head, I’m not denying that.”
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Former World No 1 Mats Wilander also gave his verdict on Sinner performance to Eurosport, as he suggested the undisputed king of men’s tennis barely put a foot wrong against Zverev.
“He was absolutely aggressively consistent, calm, the intensity was up still. For me, a flawless performance by Jannik Sinner,” said Wilander.
“I definitely thought Sascha Zverev had a chance but for me, he was a little bit flat emotionally in this match. Obviously, the first set is important but it’s five sets and he would’ve thought the longer it went on, the better chance he had. But Sinner came out and served brilliantly all day; that was a little bit of a surprise to me.
“In starting to wonder if there is the self-belief. Not in terms of how he hit the ball, but in terms of tactics.
“You got to believe in the third set, when you win the first point in the last game. Try to bluff yourself into the match emotionally at least. He doesn’t do that and that worries me a little bit.
“I thought the anger would come out in a positive way but it kind of went away when in the third set.”
Sinner has now strengthened his position at the top of the ATP Rankings, but his future in the sport is in doubt as he prepares to appeal against the two doping tests he failed last year.
Sinner was found to have the anabolic steroid clostebol in his system but was cleared of wrongdoing by the International Tennis Integrity Agency, who agreed with the Italian’s claims that he was not to blame for the presence of the banned substance.
The World Anti-Doping Agency has appealed against that decision and the case will be heard in April.
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