By Richard Pagliaro | Sunday, May 3, 2026
Photo credit: Mutua Madrid Open Facebook

No. 2-seeded Alexander Zverev stepped onto Madrid’s salmon-colored stage with high hopes.

By the time world No. 1 Jannik Sinner was done dispensing a 6-1, 6-2 beatdown, an emotionally black-and-blue Zverev conceded there’s a vast chasm between the rampaging Sinner and the rest of the ATP pack.

Sinner annihilated Zverev 6-1, 6-2 to capture his maiden Mutua Madrid Open—and make major ATP Masters 1000 history.

World No. 1 Sinner made dual history collecting his record fifth consecutive ATP Masters 1000 championship—Paris, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo and Madrid—and becoming the first man to win the first four ATP Masters 1000 titles of a season. It was Sinner’s

A shell-shocked Zverev said the lanky Italian’s dominance is no surprise. Sinner stretched his ATP Masters 1000 match winning streak to an eye-popping 28 matches.

Zverev said there are two simple reasons why the ATP Tour is now Sin City: Sinner is better than everyone else and his lofty level does not fluctuate even in finals. Sinner improved to 30-2 in 2026 and raised his career finals record to 28-9.

“Yeah, I think, look, I don’t think it’s a surprise,” Zverev said of Sinner. “He’s world No. 1. I think it’s not more, not the improving, I think he’s very stable. He doesn’t have dips, he doesn’t have phases where he goes down.

“I think that’s why he’s world No. 1. To me, that’s more spectacular, I think, keeping the level the whole time.”

Can Sinner sustain the quality of play fueling this record Masters 1000 run, capture his home Masters 1000 crow in Rome to complete the career set of ATP Masters 1000 championships? Zverev said the stark reality for the Tour is take Alcaraz out of the equation and Sinner has no present peer.

“I think there’s a big gap between Sinner and everybody else right now,” Zverev said. “It’s quite
simple. I think there’s a big gap between Sinner and everybody else. And I think there’s a big gap between Alcaraz, myself, maybe Novak, and everybody else.

“I think there’s two gaps right now. It’s difficult to say that there’s not a gap between Sinner
and everybody else if he hasn’t lost a match in how many Masters events? Since Shanghai. He hasn’t lost a match in almost nine months. I think you have to admit that there’s a gap between him and everybody else, yeah.”