The surprising weakness Tim Henman says cost Flavio Cobolli the French Open and how he can fix it

Tim Henman has pointed out what Flavio Cobolli needs to work on after his defeat to Alexander Zverev in the Roland Garros final.

Cobolli, still only 24, put in a strong showing and pushed Zverev all the way. But even with all that promise, Tim Henman believes there’s still plenty for him to work on.

Speaking on Eurosport after the match, Henman highlighted one area where Cobolli can improve: his serve. Despite already being an impressive player, Cobolli’s serve isn’t as strong as others at the top level.

Zverev also made history with this win. He’s now won more five-set matches than any other man at Roland Garros, including three during this tournament alone.

This final wasn’t an easy road for him either. He had to dig deep against Holger Rune and Taylor Fritz earlier in the tournament before finally lifting the trophy against Cobolli.

Henman offers analysis on Cobolli after Paris defeat

Henman told TNT Sports: “His serving is powerful, but I think he needs to improve that first serve percentage so he gets the forehand into play.

“He is a great mover and a great competitor. He is not shy of finishing the point at the net.

“So when you are moving on to those other surfaces like grass and hard, I think his game can transition well.”

Cobolli reached his first quarterfinal at Wimbledon last year, which was his best showing in a major until now. This result also means Cobolli will break into the ATP top 10 for the first time, marking another big step forward in his career.

Zverev breaks Sinner-Alcaraz’s hold on Grand Slams

With this win, Zverev has brought an end to the recent Grand Slam dominance of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

Since Novak Djokovic won the 2023 US Open, every major had been claimed by either Sinner or Alcaraz.

The pair split all four Grand Slams between them in both 2024 and 2025, with Alcaraz also taking the title at the 2026 Australian Open.

But after Alcaraz pulled out of Roland Garros and Sinner exited early, the door opened for a new champion—and Zverev seized his chance.

Zverev also became just the sixth player in the Open Era to have both a Grand Slam title and an Olympic gold medal, joining Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Andre Agassi, Andy Murray and Yevgeny Kafelnikov.

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