Jannik Sinner won the Australian Open men’s singles final against Alexander Zverev without ceding a set or a break point. The 23-year-old’s 6-3 7-6(4) 6-3 victory never seemed in doubt against a rival who lacked the belief to push back against the purring precision and power from the other side of the net.

It was peak Pete Sampras-style efficiency, bringing out all the inadequacies that Zverev feels when he’s at the business end of a major. “I never wanted to be the great guy or the colorful guy or the interesting guy. I wanted to be the guy who won titles,” Sampras once said. Sinner is a natural successor in that regard.

Pressure is a privilege might sound like an inane mantra of the modern-day sportsman, but Sinner isn’t scared of the finish line. These days, he’s lapping most opponents anyway.

That’s three slams in the pocket for the Italian after his Melbourne victory over Daniil Medvedev in 2024 and the more straightforward straight sets win over Taylor Fritz at Flushing Meadows in September. It’s also three losses out of three for Zverev in major finals. Sinner gave his devastated opponent a pep talk and a hug afterwards but the 27-year-old was empty.

Sinner is on a 21-match unbeaten streak and was able to keep the two-time ATP Finals winner at arm’s length on serve and then constantly ask questions on return. Zverev knew he had to mix it up and be courageous. He couldn’t carry it off. Not many can.

Sinner cooks differently to the more laissez-faire Carlos Alcaraz. The latter has an emotional surge to his game that can interfere with the business of winning. His Next Gen rival maintains rallies so consistently that he never needs a factory reset. Sinner’s functionality is almost glitch-free. His opponent carried too much baggage to decode it.

There was a fleeting moment in the semifinal against Ben Shelton where the World No.1 looked frustrated with his mechanics. Shelton had broken him twice in the opening set to lead 6-5 and was two points away from putting a sliver of doubt in the Sinner psyche. That’s as competitive as semifinal day got. Sinner won nine sets without reply from the last-eight onwards. When it mattered most, he muted the outside noise and his opponents.

Zverev had his momentary chance on Sunday when Sinner’s tennis became patchy in the second set tiebreak. The net cord intervened decisively at 4-4. As soon as that ball dropped on the wrong side for a crowd hoping for some late-night theater, the German felt despised even by the Gods of fortune. Sinner apologized and then just got on with business by winning the next two points to go two sets up. It was game over. Zverev’s body language never presented anything other than a man resigned to his fate.

It feels like all the drama juice seeped out of the Australian Open when Novak Djokovic defeated Alcaraz in the quarterfinals on Tuesday evening. That was the peak of jeopardy because nothing came close to Sinner’s professionalism and laser focus to win with maximum efficiency. Djokovic isn’t mortally wounded but he hasn’t got a million dollar body anymore.

Sinner’s coach Darren Cahill insisted that his charge is not “bulletproof”, especially with the pending Wada case over those two failed drug tests last March. The U.S Open champion was cleared by an independent tribunal after testing positive for clostebol. There is another hurdle to clear before Sinner can truly move on.

The best player in the world has a “clear mind” because there’s no case to answer in his view. He certainly can’t do wrong on the court. “He’s very, very similar to Novak when he was at his best. They barely miss. They make you think like you have to overhit all the time to have a chance in a rally against them,” Zverev said.

Sinner has all the answers at the moment. An ailing Djokovic, an erratic Alcaraz and a Zverev who just declared that he isn’t on the same level are the players standing in the way. His biggest opponent is the potential ban that could take him out of the equation completely. It’s the only way the rest of the field get a look in.