Wimbledon 2026: Jannik Sinner breaks Italian record, advances to third round

Defending champion Jannik Sinner delivered a far more assured performance to book his place in the third round of Wimbledon, defeating Portugal's Nuno Borges 7-6(4), 7-6(2), 6-4 on Centre Court on Wednesday.After surviving a gruelling five-set battle against Miomir Kecmanovic in his opening-round match, the World No. 1 looked much sharper against Borges. Although the contest remained competitive for long spells, Sinner produced his best tennis in the crucial moments, sealing victory in two hours and 32 minutes to set up a third-round meeting with American Jenson Brooksby.

Sinner breaks Italian grand slam milestone

The victory carried added significance beyond Wimbledon.

It marked Sinner's 95th main-draw win at Grand Slams, making him the most successful Italian player in major history by surpassing Nicola Pietrangeli's long-standing record. The 24-year-old is also chasing another piece of history at the All England Club. Having lifted his maiden Wimbledon title last year, Sinner is now aiming to become just the 10th man in the Open Era to successfully defend the men's singles crown.

Finding his rhythm on grass

Sinner appeared far more comfortable on grass than he did in his tournament opener. He struck 47 winners while keeping his unforced errors to 30, showcasing the aggressive baseline game that has made him one of the sport's dominant forces.The Italian briefly surrendered a break in the third set, but by then he had already established control after breaking Borges twice early in the set. One of the defining moments came in the second set when Sinner immediately broke back after Borges served for the set at 5-4, before cruising through the tie-break.Despite the straight-sets win, Sinner admitted he is still adapting to the surface after skipping the traditional grass-court warm-up events before Wimbledon."Especially in the first round, I felt the lack of matches. Also today there were a couple of moments. I need to get back into this rhythm. If we look at the scoreboard, it was very close, so these matches, and especially the individual sets, help me a lot," Sinner said.The defending champion believes there is still room for improvement as the tournament progresses."Of course, we aim to get a little better. Tomorrow is a day off. Yesterday I didn't do much because my first match was five sets and very long, so I'm happy about today."