After the sweaty strangeness of Roland Garros 2026, Wimbledon proved to be a more familiar tale on the men’s side at least.
After his shock exit to Juan Manuel Cerundolo in Paris, Jannik Sinner resumed his dominant ways with a four-set victory over Alexander Zverev to earn a second title at SW19, and a fifth major overall.
But on the women's side, it was a fortnight to forget for the top six as they all fell earlier than planned. In the end, the Czech pair of Linda Noskova and Karolina Muchova survived the bloodbath and gave us a highly dramatic final with the 21-year-old eventually triumphant.
Elsewhere, Arthur Fery excelled, Serena Williams flattered to deceive, and Carlos Alcaraz was sorely missed.
Let's get into it.
Convincing defence from the no.1
Just weeks after the Parisian sun melted Sinner’s chances, the Italian rediscovered his verve at the All England Club.
After overcoming a spirited effort from Miomir Kecmanovic in their five-set opener, the world no.1 grew into the fortnight match by match. He did not drop a set from then until the final. In the semis he overcame seven-time winner Novak Djokovic who unlike at Melbourne, looked all of his 39 years.
In the championship match, Sinner must have been surprised by the unusually aggressive mindset of Zverev, a player he had already beaten four times in 2026.
The match was extremely tight, with robust serving punctuated by brutal forehands from the German. But Sinner stuck with him as his game started to bubble. By the second set tie-break, the 24-year-old reached boiling point and surged to a level beyond Zverev's reach.
From there, Sinner took control of the contest and despite a worthy effort from the German, held firm for a fifth career major and a second at Wimbledon. The Italian has already won six titles in 2026 and moves onto the North American swing with confidence restored.
Noskova follows in the footsteps of Czech legends
Before a Royal Box that featured Martina Navratilova and Petra Kvitova, 21-year-old Linda Noskova added her own chapter to the extraordinary book of Czech success on tour, especially at the All England Club.
Noskova is the third Czech player to lift the women's title in the past four years and the sixth woman overall in the tournament's history.
Beyond the raw stats though, we saw a generally polished and fearless performance from a first time finalist. Apart from the second set wobble, Noskova's serve was pinpoint and her groundstrokes bullied Muchova throughout.
Few women have as many solutions on a tennis court as Muchova, but she struggled to find the right combination for her younger compatriot for much of the contest. It was particularly impressive how the 21-year-old recovered her poise after that second set meltdown.
With her overwhelming serve, explosive power and no nonsense approach, Noskova has the potential to do far more damage on the tour in the coming years.
Zverev 2.0 shows major promise
For so much of Alexander Zverev's career, he has appeared to wait for the ball to come to him rather than seize the initiative. That may no longer be the case.
With a grand slam breakthrough in Paris, the rejuvenated 29-year-old turned up at Wimbledon with fresh purpose and received a good draw.
As the fortnight progressed, Zverev had some luck as he faced a stricken Taylor Fritz in the last eight, and the novel presence of British wildcard Arthur Fery in the semis. The German did what was required in those matches but the final showcased a new version of the veteran.
From the off, Zverev took the initiative in rallies with monster forehands. He struck it with a velocity and intent that I can’t remember seeing from him. It damaged the world no.1 and gave hope of a contest.
For the majority of the first two sets, his ferocious serving and immense ground strokes made him much more competitive than recent showings against Sinner. Unfortunately for Zverev, his game hit a ceiling while the world no.1 was still searching for his best.
In the second set tie-break, the Italian rediscovered the quality within and the gulf widened as the match wore on.
However, this has to be the way that Zverev goes about facing Sinner, Alcaraz and Djokovic in future. Bravery is rewarded at majors and is a prerequisite against the game’s very best. Can he approach the US Open in the same vein?
Promise and pain for Muchova
Let's start with the positives for this long time Crosscourt View favourite.
Fit and firing, Karolina Muchova lit up the fractious women's draw with her uniquely gorgeous brand of tennis. More importantly, she won doing it and notched up impressive victories over multiple major winners Barbora Krejcikova, Naomi Osaka, and Coco Gauff.
She looked poised to claim her first major after a valiant loss to Iga Swiatek in the Roland Garros 2023 final. But the efforts of overcoming those players and the occasion stifled the Czech in the end.
She was sluggish and error prone from the start of Saturday’s final despite, or possibly because, of her extra experience. Meanwhile, Noskova played the match like a practice match before reality bit at the end of the second set.
Muchova did well to prolong her stay on Centre Court and find some good tennis when she really needed it. But it’s a shame that it was primarily for that middle set. At the age of 29, an appearance in a major final can’t be taken for granted.
I really hope we see her in another. If her body can cooperate with that brilliant mind for a period, we could still see Muchova sprinkle her magic dust on a few more majors.
Can the Fery-tale last?
Tennis is incredible in how it can transform players from niche status to global stardom in the space of a fortnight.
In February, Arthur Fery lost in the qualifiers of a Challenger in the Dominican Republic. But over the past fortnight, the world no.114 became the darling of Centre Court as he dispatched Grigor Dimitrov and Flavio Cobolli before an enraptured crowd.
Having grown up at the All England Club, and with a game nicely tuned for the grass, it looked like horses for courses. It was a remarkable achievement to reach such a stage given his ranking. But we have seen similar stories before.
In 2018, Marco Cecchinato upset Novak Djokovic in his unlikely run to the last four of Roland Garros. Alas, he never made it past the third round of another major.
Then in 2021, Aslan Karatsev took the Australian Open by storm as he made the last four as a qualifier in his major debut. He's yet to make the second week of a major since.
For any tennis player, qualifying for and making a deep run at a grand slam is an excellent achievement. But the even tougher part is doing it again. And again.
It will be fascinating to watch how Fery does over the next year before we arrive at Wimbledon 2027.
Issues for the elite women
It was very difficult to put the women's preview for Wimbledon 2026 together because there was so much doubt over the top names.
As it turned out, Wimbledon 2026 saw six of the top 10 exit before the last eight.
Elina Svitolina departed in round one soon to be followed by Mirra Andreeva (second round); Elena Rybakina, Iga Swiatek and Amanda Anisimova (third round); and then world no.1 Aryna Sabalenka in round four.
While Rybakina had one of her off-days and Sabalenka ran into a brilliant Naomi Osaka, Swiatek was a mess in her straight sets loss to Alexandra Eala.
So assured in victory 12 months ago, the Pole looked anxious as her forehand imploded against the lower ranked but resolute Filipino.
With so much pressure evident in her matches, I wonder if it would be beneficial for Iga to take a break to replenish her tennis soul?
Come back Carlos!
Without the Spanish talisman, the men's game is in an odd state.
Sinner is the unquestioned no.1. Zverev and Djokovic are not quite as good as the Italian, but better than the rest of the field. We are then searching for a group of players who can mount a legitimate challenge to those three.
Jack Draper is weighed down with injury, Felix Auger-Aliassime by previous losses. Joao Fonseca, Jakub Mensik and Rafa Jodar may prove to be worthy foils but they need time to grow.
So for the moment, men's draws are about one man, or two others if he should fall. Let's hope we see the return of the Murcian magician in the near term. The sport needs him.
Should Serena stop?
After all the hype and understandable intrigue, Serena Williams could not find the old magic on her Wimbledon return.
Seven times a champion at the All England Club in singles and holder of most records in the women's game, Serena's place in tennis lore is secure. That's why I found it sad to watch this spectacle.
I felt the same four years ago when she crashed out in round one to world no.115 Harmony Tan. This time around she fell to a player (Maya Joint) who had lost 13 of her previous 14 matches.
While I get the farewell run in doubles with sister Venus, is the 44-year-old not asking too much of herself to compete in singles with women half her age? Once the supreme example of power and athleticism combined, Williams just isn't that player anymore.
I fear that the performance against Joint will be repeated if the legend continues to believe that time can be conquered. It can't be beaten, just ask Roger, Rafa and Andy.
