‘Always felt like a special player’: Sachin Tendulkar reacts as Alexander Zverev finally breaks Grand Slam curse

Sachin Tendulkar and Alexander Zverev NEW DELHI: Alexander Zverev finally achieved the biggest milestone of his career by winning his first Grand Slam title at the French Open. The German star defeated Flavio Cobolli in a thrilling five-set final 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-1, ending years of near misses on tennis’ biggest stages. After sealing the victory, Zverev collapsed on the clay in tears, overwhelmed by the moment after more than four hours of action-packed competition. His triumph also earned praise from Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, who wrote on X: “Sometimes tennis can take a long time to get back what the players put into it. Good to see Alexander Zverev win his first Grand Slam today at Roland-Garros. Always felt like a special player!”“Thanks to Flavio Cobolli for the way he raced today. Both players gave it their all.”Zverev entered the tournament as one of the favorites, especially after several top opponents exited early. World number one Jannik Sinner struggled and was eliminated, while Novak Djokovic also exited the tournament. Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz withdrew prior to the event due to injury.Having lost his previous three Grand Slam finals, including the 2024 French Open final and the 2020 US Open final after leading, Zverev ensured history did not repeat itself. The victory marked the 25th title of his professional career and placed him among a select group of players to win their first major title in their fourth Grand Slam final.For Cobolli, reaching the final was already the best achievement of his career. The Italian had never advanced past the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam before this tournament and was hoping to become the first Italian French Open champion since 1976.Although Zverev dominated early, Cobolli fought back to take the match to a decisive fifth set. However, the Italian seemed to run out of steam in the closing stages, allowing Zverev to take control and finally secure the Grand Slam crown he had been chasing for years.