Three or so months ago, there was some concern Jannik Sinner was losing ground in his rivalry with Carlos Alcaraz after losses in the Australian Open and Doha.<\/p>\n
Things have changed a bit there.<\/p>\n
The world No. 1 defeated Alexander Zverev 6-1, 6-2 in the final of the Madrid Open on Sunday, making him the first player in history to win five straight ATP Masters 1000 titles. He was previously in a tie with Novak Djokovic (who won four straight 1000 titles three different times) and Rafael Nadal (once).<\/p>\n
Sinner overwhelmed Zverev from the start, winning 20 of the first 23 points on his way to winning the first set 6-1, and doing so in just 25 minutes. After nine minutes, Sinner had a 3-0 lead. He extended that to 5-0 by 17 minutes.<\/p>\n
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Zverev provided a bit more opposition in the second set, but not by much before Sinner won 6-2. The match only lasted 57 minutes as Sinner rocketed forehands from the back line, easily returned backhands and feathered drop shots at the net, outplaying Zverev in every aspect on the court.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started very well in the match, breaking him straight away,\u201d Sinner said in his on-court interview<\/a> after the match. \u201cBut he was not playing his best tennis today. So I just tried to get with the front foot ahead and I\u2019m very happy about the level I\u2019m playing.\u201d<\/p>\n The win extends Sinner\u2019s winning streak over Zverev to nine matches, which dates back to the 2024 Cincinnati Open. He has defeated the German in all five of his consecutive 1000 titles.<\/p>\n \u201cSuper sorry for the final; it was not my best day,\u201d Zverev said to the crowd before the trophy ceremony.<\/p>\n Sinner earned a $1.2 million prize for winning the Madrid Open, adding to the $4.35 million he\u2019s already won this year. For his career, Sinner has totaled more than $60 million<\/a> in earnings.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Jannik Sinner is doing historic things right now<\/p>\n Sinner, 24, has now won 28 straight ATP 1000 matches between the Paris Masters, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo and Madrid. If he wins four more matches in Rome later this month, he will break Djokovic\u2019s consecutive match record of 31 wins.<\/p>\n A Rome title would make him the first man to sweep the clay 1000s since Nadal in 2010, in addition to another chain in his unprecedented streak. All of those records go back to 1990, when the modern ATP 1000 system was introduced.<\/p>\n