From shock loss to Wimbledon title

For a brief moment after his shock French Open loss, Jannik Sinner appeared vulnerable. He answered the critics by storming to a second Wimbledon title.

It was a point that encapsulated Jannik Sinner's journey to a second Wimbledon title.

In a tight final, Sinner had a chance to break opponent Alexander Zverev's serve. He fell to the ground mid-rally, picked himself back up and forced an error out of Zverev to clinch the first break of serve almost three hours into the match.

Sinner would not be denied from there.

The Italian world number one would again drop to the ground - but this time in celebration after completing a four-set comeback victory to become only the 10th man in the Open era to retain the Wimbledon men's singles title.

Once again triumphant at the only tennis tournament he would watch as a child - when the sport he would come to master still had to compete with skiing and football for his attention - the manner of his fifth Grand Slam success suggested normal service had resumed.

Because, for a brief moment, Sinner had appeared vulnerable.

One month after the world number one suffered a seismic shock at the French Open, another upset was brewing.

Confronted with unwanted history, Sinner would have to come from behind to beat Miomir Kecmanovic in five sets and avoid becoming only the third defending Wimbledon men's champion to lose in the first round.

The 24-year-old's durability in marathon encounters has long been a concern, with Sinner having lost eight of his previous nine matches that went the distance.

There had also been a shattering event in Paris for the second year in a row.

Sinner arrived at Wimbledon having not competed since his extraordinary collapse in the French Open second round, when he lost to Argentine Juan Manuel Cerundolo from two sets and 5-1 up.

He had recovered from a far greater catastrophe to triumph at the All England Club in 2025, taking revenge on rival Carlos Alcaraz just 35 days after losing their epic Roland Garros final from two sets and three championship points up.

But now his physical resilience was under the spotlight - and the early signs at Wimbledon offered encouragement to those eyeing his throne.

Both junctures would have taken others months to recover from. For Sinner, they became catalysts for greater heights.

"This one means a lot because it was a tough one after Paris, again," Sinner said.

"Last year was also tough. But coming here, I tried to put myself in the best position to be as competitive as possible.

"We put in a lot of long days, sacrificing a lot to be in this position."

Since escaping another monumental setback 13 days ago, Sinner's performances have expelled any doubts over how he might respond.

By beating Zverev in Sunday's final, Sinner became the first player in 48 years to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon after being taken to five sets in his opening match.

He is the first man to manage that at any slam since Spanish great Rafael Nadal at the 2011 French Open.

Sinner's coach, Darren Cahill, said: "There have been a few kicks in the stomach along the way. Tough losses. What makes us most proud is the way he comes back.

"It doesn't put him down for long. That's his attitude in tennis and in life.

"We spoke about his resilience, and being able to come back and be bigger, stronger and faster whenever he has a bad moment.

"If you don't have those tough moments, maybe you never grow like he has been able to."

Sinner dominated the ATP Tour for the first five months of this year, recording a 30-match win streak between March and May and winning five successive Masters 1000 titles.

It made his earliest Slam exit for three years all the more astonishing.

Having overcome his almighty first-round scare at Wimbledon, Sinner produced dominant straight-set wins in each of his next five matches on route to the final.

The most impressive was undoubtedly the two hour and 20 minute semi-final demolition of men's record 24-time major winner Novak Djokovic, during which he faced just a single break point - and dismissed it with an ace.

But in Sunday's showpiece, Sinner once again demonstrated the unshakeable resilience that has taken him to a landmark fifth major - and will go on to establish him among the greats.

With three hours and 46 minutes on the clock, Sinner landed his 58th winner of a final in which he had to recover from losing the first set, holding his hands on his heads as he soaked in the moment.

"A worthy champion, an incredible defence of his title. As the great players do, they find the way to win," former British number one Tim Henman said on BBC TV.