WATCH: Sinner Consoles Zverev After Disappointing Australian Open Final Defeat
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Alexander Zverev's wait for a maiden Grand Slam title remains ongoing after he lost the Australian Open men's singles final to Jannik Sinner, but the Italian showed his class afterward.
Sinner was simply too good for Zverev in the final in Melbourne. The German did not play badly but still succumbed to a comprehensive 3-6, 6-7, 3-6 loss and did not create a break point throughout the contest.
Zverev has now lost all three of his Grand Slam finals. He came close in five-set battles at the US Open and French Open with Dominic Thiem and Carlos Alcaraz, who lost to Novak Djokovic at this year's Australian Open, but that was not the case against Sinner in Melbourne.
The moment became too much for Zverev in the trophy ceremony. He began to cry before watching another one of his rivals lift a Grand Slam trophy next to him for the third time.
However, Sinner's moment of glory did not stop him from conducting himself impeccably. The video below shows him comforting Zverev while the 27-year-old continues to cry.
Sinner put his hands on Zverev's shoulders and spoke animatedly to him. It is impossible to know for sure what Sinner was saying, but he may have been telling the Olympic gold medalist that his moment would come eventually.
Zverev, appreciative of Sinner's classiness, embraced him. The crowd, who loved seeing the final played in the right spirit during and after the tennis had finished, cheered.
While Sinner seems quite an introverted character, he always conducts himself properly on the court, showing full respect for his opponents. The gesture to Zverev after beating him on such a significant stage shows that again.
The ATP world No. 1 also warmly praised Zverev in the trophy ceremony, and it was the first thing he mentioned in his speech. Sinner called the German a fantastic player and told him to keep believing that a Grand Slam triumph would eventually happen.
"I would like to start with Sascha, another tough day for you. Your whole team, your family, you have an incredible team behind you, you're an amazing player. Keep believing in yourself because I think everyone who is involved in this sport knows how strong you are."
"Not just as a player, but also as a person. Keep it up, keep working hard because we all believe you can lift one of these (points to winner's trophy) very, very soon. So, I wish you only the best."
Zverev's runner-up speech included him lauding Sinner for how good he is and admitting the Italian is the best player in the world by far after his incredible development during the last 12 months.
"Congratulations to Jannik, you more than deserve it. You're the best player in the world by far. I was hoping that I could be more competitive today, but you're just too good, it's as simple as that. So, congratulations to you and your team. You've worked hard, you've done the right things, and no one deserves this trophy more."
