Jannik Sinner‘s claimed the Gentlemen’s Singles title over Alexander Zverev in the Wimbledon final, and former nine-time Wimbledon champion Martina Navratilova thinks she knows why. The Italian came back from behind to rack up a hard-fought 6-7, 7-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory in three hours and 46 minutes. Though Sinner has dominated their matchups in recent years (winning all 10 of their latest matchups), Navratilova believes that there is a unique reason why he was able to reign supreme over Zverev in the final – and it’s not even vaguely related to tennis.

“I want to compare. When Zverev slipped, he hurt himself a little bit, but he was okay,” she said on The Tennis Channel. “When Sinner slipped, he got up and still won the point. We have commented on how good his balance is, and I think it goes back to skiing. When you ski, you have to keep fighting for the middle of the foot, you have to be really well balanced, and his balance is unbelievable for somebody that tall. He’s nimble.”

Not many people know that Sinner was a competitive junior skier. He had even won the Italian national giant slalom championship at just eight years of age and had placed second in the national championship. But he had quit the sport at the age of 13 to focus solely on tennis.

Though Sinner now isn’t able to ski as often due to his rigorous training and schedule, the sport has already helped him a lot in improving his balance, as Navratilova noted on The Tennis Channel panel discussion. That is why it is rare to see the Italian slip or lose his footing on the court. Even if Sinner does slip, he recovers almost immediately. A great example of his resilience came during the final against Zverev.

It all happened when Sinner was on the verge of clinching the first break of the Wimbledon final in the third set. He had put Zverev’s serve under pressure in the eighth game and had the advantage over his opponent. The two would then get involved in an intense rally, and it was here that the Italian slipped and fell to the ground.

But he recovered right away and hit a strong forehand return. Zverev would then miscue his shot and send it way over the baseline, handing the game and the break to Sinner. The World No. 1 is among the fittest players on the tour at present and has regularly participated in tournaments throughout the season so far.

The 2024 Madrid Open was the last time that the 24-year-old had missed a tournament due to injury. He pulled out against Félix Auger-Aliassime due to a right hip injury. Though Sinner had been severely affected by the extremely hot conditions in both Rome and Paris during the clay swing, he now appears to have overcome that problem as well.

One of the reasons behind Jannik Sinner’s solid fitness level could be the specific training methods that he uses to sharpen his focus and stay locked in during matches.

Jannik Sinner trains his brain by strapping electrodes to his body

The Italian is among the growing number of athletes who have adopted brain training routines to help with physical functioning. These methods are reported to induce calmness in athletes. The training is conducted at mental gyms that collect information through complicated devices and analyse the data. The aim is to train the mind to reduce energy expenditure during high-pressure situations for prolonged focus.

One of these methods includes strapping electrodes to one’s body to improve focus. Sinner is known to use this training routine under the supervision of Riccardo Ceccarelli, who is an Italy-based sports physician. The World No. 1 is among the many athletes to have joined Ceccarelli’s mental gyms in recent years, including F1 star Charles Leclerc and noted skier Mikaela Shiffrin, according to a May 2026 Men’s Health report.

The training method seems to be working well for Sinner so far, as he has comfortably been the best player on tour this season. He has already bagged six titles, including a Grand Slam, and boasts an incredible win-loss record of 44-3. He also manages to remain calm in tense situations and handles the pressure quite comfortably.

Sinner hasn’t looked back ever since dethroning Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz for the No. 1 spot in the rankings. He had done so by defeating the Spaniard in the final of the Monte Carlo Masters in April. He has held the position since then and currently has a points tally of 13,450. He has a massive 4,970-point gap to World No. 2 Alexander Zverev, who currently has 8,480 points under his name.

It remains to be seen whether Jannik Sinner will be able to maintain his high-flying form in the upcoming hard-court season that is set to commence later this month.