Sinner crushes Zverev in Madrid and makes history with five straight Masters 1000 titles
58 minutes. That is all Jannik Sinner needed to dispatch Alexander Zverev in the Madrid Masters 1000 final on Sunday (6-1, 6-2). It was a cold, almost clinical display on a clay court that had not exactly been his best friend until now. In the process, the world No. 1 landed a historic record: five straight Masters 1000 titles, something nobody had ever done before. Rolex Paris Masters 2025, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo and Madrid 2026. No one had ever put together a run like it.
Zverev was first to admit he had not been at the level required. Sinner did not argue. But that does nothing to dilute the Italian’s performance, quite the opposite. A 28th straight win at Masters 1000 level, while giving up just three games, does not happen by luck. He is now only three wins away from Novak Djokovic’s all-time record in this category (31). He has also won the first four Masters 1000 events of 2026, a first in tennis history.
Asked about the record, Sinner kept his feet on the ground. “It means a lot to me. But I do not play to break other records. What the other players have achieved in the past, and what Novak keeps doing, is incredible. I cannot compare myself to them.” Humble pose or the real thing, it hardly matters. The numbers speak for themselves.
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Zverev off the pace, Sinner untroubled: a final that tells us nothing about his ceiling
On Eurosport Tennis Club, Nicolas Escude tried to put into words what everyone is feeling when they watch Sinner. “It has been clear for a while now. He is a steamroller, five Masters 1000 in a row, and you can even add the Masters. He has swept through it without dropping a set.” But the former French player also pointed out the limits of what this final could tell us. “We learned nothing about Sinner from this match. He did nothing extraordinary, he was never under pressure. It was Zverev who was nowhere near the level.”
What stands out above all is the gap Sinner has opened up between himself and the rest of the tour. The slightest dip from his opponents gets punished straight away. He never dips. Since Indian Wells, the machine has kept rolling, stacking up tournaments, wins and records as if it were all part of the plan.
Sinner in Rome, the last Masters 1000 title still missing
There is one Masters 1000 title Sinner has never won: Rome, the Foro Italico, on home soil. The tifosi dream about it, and so does Nicolas Escude. “It is brilliant that the last one he is missing is at home in Rome. From a storytelling point of view, it is fantastic.” But the former coach is not ruling out a withdrawal. “I thought he looked a bit marked around the face, a bit drawn. If he has to skip Rome, he will skip it.”
Sinner himself has not made up his mind. He admitted he has given a lot since Indian Wells, mentally above all. “Playing at home is always something very special. Physically, I feel good. There is no reason not to play in Rome. But at the same time, I want to enjoy this moment. Especially mentally, we have given a lot. We will see.” A bit of smoke and mirrors, while his real target for the season remains Roland-Garros.
The suspense around Rome is, in truth, the only suspense Sinner is offering right now. On court, he is giving no one any. Five Masters 1000 titles on the bounce, 28 straight wins at that level, four titles from the first four Masters 1000s of 2026. At some point, records stop feeling like shocks. They just pile up, calmly, as if that is the natural order of things.
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