Sinner dismantles Zverev to retain Australian Open title

Jannik Sinner retained his Australian Open title with an emphatic 6-3 7-6(4) 6-3 win over Alexander Zverev on Sunday, breaking new ground for Italian tennis and leaving his German rival smarting after a third Grand Slam final defeat.

World number one Sinner became Italy's first player to win three Grand Slam crowns, moving past Nicola Pietrangeli, who won back-to-back men's titles at Roland Garros in 1959-60.

A year after mowing down Daniil Medvedev in five sets for his first major trophy, Sinner sapped his second Melbourne Park final of all drama by applying suffocating pressure and clinical execution.

Under the lights at Rod Laver Arena, he captured the decisive break in the sixth game when Zverev pushed a forehand long.

Arguably, the German's spirit had already been broken by an unlucky net cord that turned the second-set tiebreak in Sinner's favour.

Zverev gave up match point with a forehand that fell well wide of the line before Sinner sealed the win with a backhand passing shot.

Sinner raised his arms in triumph and clambered into the terraces to embrace his entourage.

For Zverev, the wait for a maiden Grand Slam title will go on after finishing runner-up to Carlos Alcaraz at last year's French Open and having been beaten by Dominic Thiem in the 2020 US Open.