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Monday, 13 July 2026 / Published in Alexander Zverev, Jannik Sinner, Wimbledon

2026 Wimbledon Final. Zverev Wins Just 35% Baseline Points. Game Over.

Gday from Wimbledon,

Winners minus errors is by far the best way to evaluate baseline performance. And to be crystal clear, it’s winners minus all errors, which is forced and unforced errors combined.

When you analyze a match this way (which I always do), you quickly zero in on the real reason Jannick Sinner won back-to-back Wimbledon singles titles yesterday. Sinner won 6-7(9), 7-6(2), 6-3, 6-4 in three hours and 46 minutes. On the surface, the scoreboard looks very even. And for a couple of sets it was, and then Sinner pulled away in one specific area. Baseline performance.

Let’s take a look at where Sinner really created his separation in the final.

IMPROVE YOUR BASELINE PERFORMANCE

Webinar 64: Attacking From D To A

Webinar 67: Defensive Forehands

Webinar 45: How To Build A Point

Webinar 52: Playing Behind

Webinar 40: Climbing The Ladder

FOREHAND PERFORMANCE

This is where Sinner crafted his winning advantage, hitting almost double the amount of forehand winners as Zverev, while still managing to commit fewer errors.

Jannik Sinner

Winners = 28
Total Errors (forced & unforced) = 41
Winners – Errors = -13

Sasha Zverev

Winners = 15
Total Errors (forced & unforced) = 47
Winners – Errors = -32

Overall, Sinner won 15 more points than Zverev (145 to 130), and won a substantial 19-point advantage just in forehand performance alone. This is where Sinner put a stranglehold on the final. The further the match progressed, the more Sinner found solutions to his baseline problems.

Last Two Sets (Sinner Won 6-3, 6-4)

Forehand Winners = Sinner 12 / Zverev 5
Total Errors = Sinner 17 / Zverev 18
Winners – Errors = Sinner -5 / Zverev – 13

The deeper the match progressed, the more Sinner was able to rely on his forehand to control the point and put two hands on the trophy.

NET & BASELINE PERFORMANCE

Both players won north of 70% when they came to the net, which was to be expected.

Net Points Won

Sinner = 78% (18/23)
Zverev = 71% (20/28)

While there was very little that separated them at the front of the court, Sinner absolutely dominated proceedings from the back.

Baseline Points Won

Sinner = 56% (77/138)
Zverev = 35% (46/131)

There was a massive disparity in points won when standing at the baseline when the point ended. Sinner won an extremely impressive 56% of points from the back of the court. Zverev, by comparison, only won 35% of his baseline points. That is such a low number that it automatically relegates him to the runner-up position.

SUMMARY

You don’t have to be good at everything, but you have got to be good at something. Sinner and Zverev are baseline juggernauts in today’s game. They both love to smash backhands cross court and were always going to perform very evenly there. It was the forehand where Sinner wrestled control of the match.

For a while, it felt like Zverev really had his teeth into the match. But as the first two sets came and went, it was Sinner who was slowly improving off the forehand wing, and it was Zverev who was slowly but surely starting to spray.

Here’s Zverev’s baseline performance for the tournament.

Zverev Baseline Points Won

Rd 1 v Blockx = 48%
Rd 2 v Royer = 53%
Rd 3 v Giron = 47%
Rd 4 v Lehecka = 42%
Qtr v Fritz = 63%
Semi v Fery = 61%
Final v Sinner = 35%

Zverev had not been punished like this from the back of the court all tournament. I don’t think I have seen any player win just 35% of baseline points and win the match. You can double down on that in a Wimbledon final.

The practice court is clearly broken. Here’s the proof.

Points are "front loaded". By far the majority of the action, and the winning, takes place in THE FIRST 4 SHOTS. The practice court is full of long rallies. Matches are dominated by short rallies. There is a massive disconnect occurring.

We spend too much time grinding, banging balls up and down the middle of the court – that have no real benefit to winning tennis matches.

There are 3 specific rally lengths in tennis. Here is their percentage breakdown of total points.

0-4 Shots = 70%
5-8 Shots = 20%
9+ Shots = 10%

The First 4 Shots is specifically the serve, return, Serve +1 groundstroke and Return +1 groundstroke. Those are normally the shots that get practiced the least, but matter the most to winning tennis matches.

The net is an extremely high percentage place to be!

If you love playing tennis for fun, spend as much time at the baseline as you like. But if you compete – if the score matters – then you must turn your attention to the net to maximize your potential.

The “herd mentality” in tennis thinks it’s too tough to approach the net in today’s game. The conversation starts with improved string technology, more powerful rackets, and finishes with stronger, faster athletes. The herd think approaching is a relic of the past. The herd is WRONG!

AVERAGE WIN %
Baseline = 46%
Net = 66%

Data from ALL Grand Slams provides the facts about approach and volley, and the data is crystal clear – it’s immensely better than staying back at the baseline, grinding for a living.

The baseline is a tough place to create separation. Here's how to do it.

At the 2012 US Open, only 7 men and 14 women had a winning percentage from the baseline. At Wimbledon 2016, Andy Murray won the title only winning 52% of his baseline points - and he is one of the very best at it in the world!

Num3ers deeply explores the data that rules points, especially from the back of the court. Take a "deep dive" into all three rally lengths (0-4, 5-8, 9+), and winner and errors totals from the elite level of our game. The numbers will shock you!

All 4 Grand Slams

Forcing Errors = 41% Men / 37% Women
Winners = 32% Men / 29% Women
Unforced Errors = 27% Men / 34% Women

Num3ers is very much like putting a jigsaw puzzle together. It's about bringing together different data sets together to create the big picture.

Every recorded match from the 2015 Australian Open - Rd2 to the final.

There is a lot happening on a doubles court. Situations and strategies are constantly being adjusted to create mis-matches with court position. It's hard to keep track of - until now. Dou8les Num3ers is the most comprehensive analysis of doubles data in our sport. The focus is on how a point ends, and it's broken down eight ways to Sunday. Specifically, you find critical information on:

Winners rise to the #1 way a point ends (over forced & unforced errors)

- The last shot of the rally is overwhelmingly struck at the net.
- Center Window: the most important part of a doubles court to control.
- Stephen Huss: an in-depth interview on Wimbledon's Centre Court with the 2005 Wimbledon Doubles Champion.

Dou8les Num3ers leaves no stone unturned. Percentage breakdowns of how often the server or receiver hits the last shot highlight the dramatic influence of the serve. The last shot of the rally is significant, and is broken down into the following categories: volleys, overheads, passing shots, lobs and groundstrokes.

When you play a match, you actually play two matches.

When you walk out onto a tennis court, there are two matches that you are about to play. The first is during the point - a part of the match that you have spent a lot of time preparing for on the practice court. But there is a second match, that takes place in the 20 seconds between the points. This is where the mental and emotional aspects of our sport kick in.

Let's face it, there will be adversity in almost every tennis match that you play. The storm clouds are coming. How bug they are, and how long they last for, are up to you.

Between the points is very tennis specific. It provides a roadmap for the 20 seconds between the points, teaching how to handle the adversity that will surely come, and how to build on the successes that will also be present. Your mind is your biggest asset in a match, and Between the Points takes your hand off the self destruct button and stops you beating yourself.

You don't have to be good at everything, but you have got to be good at something.

You can break tennis down into four key elements - serving, returning, rallying and approaching. Each part has specific patterns of play that consistently deliver higher winning percentages than the others. No more guessing. No more opinions. All facets of our sport are covered in this exceptional product, clearly outlining what patterns to gravitate to, and how to best construct the practice court. Data comes primarily from the 2015 Australian Open.

Building Blocks

MEN = 70% errors / 30% winners
WOMEN = 74% errors / 26% winners

Forcing errors is the best way to construct a point.
You can simply break tennis down into primary and secondary patterns of play - and they are all covered here. Primary patterns include serve and return direction, forehands v backhands, and the best way to approach the net. Secondary patterns include drop shots, serve & volley and 1st volley options. If you play tournaments, this product will greatly help you simplify the singles court.

The conversation starts & ends with the Center Window.

The doubles court is like an hourglass. There are two big ends, but a small neck in the middle where all the action happens. Once you learn the power of the Center Window, where you stand to start the point will take on a lot more significance.

Doubles is a lot more about situations, with four people on the court all "dancing" with one another. Learn all the best doubles patterns, broken down for the server, returner, server's partner and the returner's partner.

Doubles Situations

The "J" - the most ideal movement for the returner's partner to attack the net.

The "V" - a better way of understanding where the server's partner should move to.

Volley Targets - there are four main areas to attack. Know which ones are higher percentage. Beach Volleyball - the idea of a "setter" and "spiker" is ideal for the doubles court.

There are certain parts of the court that the ball travels to a lot, and other low percentage areas that you really don't want to cover at all - like the alley! In general, the serving team wants to keep the ball in the middle of the court as much as possible (to help the server's partner), while the returning team benefits from hitting wider and creating more chaos in the point.