Mumbai, June 8 -- Alexander Zverev slumped on his back on the red dirt, face covered with his palms and tears rolling down. He waved his arms to the crowd, walked up the stairs to hug his father-coach, and then his team. After taking four hours and 16 minutes to beat 10th-seeded Italian Flavio Cobolli 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-1 in Sunday's French Open final, the German could barely walk. For him, though, it was all worth it. These are moments for which Zverev has had to wait a long time. While the old boys' Big Three club continued to hog the Slam share even during the twilight of their active era. While the new phenoms emerged and swept all the Slams over the last couple of years in the Sincaraz era. And even while champions like Dominic Thiem and Daniil Medvedev produced the odd exception. All along, all Zverev, 29, could produce were frequent deep runs in Majors, tough fights against the old and the new cartel, and runner-up speeches after each of his three final attempts in 2020, 2024 and 2025. After the fourth crack he could, finally, deliver the champion's speech. That it came on Court Philippe-Chatrier after a five-set, topsy-turvy marathon was almost a full circle moment for the German. In the 2024 final, he wilted away from two sets to one up against Carlos Alcaraz. In the 2026 final, from two sets to one up again, he withstood an inspired Cobolli comeback in the fourth-set tiebreaker. Zverev had been close to the finish line in the past, yet not composed enough to cross it. This time, there was no stopping him. Not even at this chaotic French Open where, amidst Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic and the other top challengers falling away, the second seed held firm. The final was his first run-in with a top-10 seed, and Zverev had his most demanding challenge in the tournament thus far. Cobolli hadn't competed since Wednesday, having received a walkover in the semi-final. And it showed at the start. Zverev broke in the lengthy and testing opening service game by the Italian to set the tone in the opening act in which Cobolli held serve just once. A lot of this contest to unveil a new Slam winner rested on Zverev's serving quality, and he was on song with that. With the 6'6'' frame tuning in those big first serves (76% to Cobolli's 57%) and dictating rhythm from the baseline (9 winners to Cobolli's 3), Zverev was making Cobolli dance to his beat. Cobolli soon put on his dancing shoes. Zverev's serve came under pressure for the first time in the seventh game of the second set. Facing a break point, he saved it after a brutal 23-shot rally. A double fault set up another, and a wild forehand handed the break to the Italian. Settled in the contest, Cobolli was now waltzing. He served a lot better (won 80% points on first serve and 67% on second, both higher than Zverev), attacked with more purpose (12 winners) and got Zverev, who made 14 unforced errors in the set, into more defensive positions. He was landing drop shot winners, serving and volleying, making forehand return winners off the first serve and backhand return winners off the second. The German's body language reeked frustration. But he quickly reset - in the mind and with the first strikes. Zverev's big serves were back (won 18 off 19 first serve points in Set 3), while Cobolli's went away. Having fended off break points earlier in the set, the Italian littered three forehand unforced errors while serving to stay in the set. A poor game from Cobolli to end the third set was followed by a poor one from Zverev to start the fourth. That break set off a chain of three more, including one while Cobolli served for the set again. That's when Zverev, seemingly hit with cramp, went for his shots and cracked three crushing winners. A tiebreak beckoned, in which Zverev flaunted an astonishing 27-3 win-loss record at Roland Garros. Cobolli in turn flaunted some of his best craft in it: a brilliant get and backhand pass to kick things off, a drop shot winner, and a thumping forehand winner to end it. Zverev saw his 3-1 lead in the tiebreaker wiped off. He managed to quickly erase that and chalked up a break to begin the decider. Cobolli took a bathroom break after an animated end to the fourth set, and returned looking rather flat and seeking the physio after three games. By then Zverev had the double break. And soon enough, his hands on a first Grand Slam trophy. And the first by a German male player at Roland Garros in the Open Era....