Jannik Sinner beat Carlos Alcaraz 7-6(5), 6-3 on Sunday to win the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters for the first time, claim his first ATP Masters 1000 title on clay, and move back to world No. 1. The final lasted 2 hours, 15 minutes and gave the Italian his eighth Masters 1000 trophy.
The match turned into a test of control as much as shotmaking. In windy conditions on Court Rainier III, Alcaraz and Sinner traded momentum early, but Sinner handled the tiebreak better and took the opening set when Alcaraz double-faulted on set point.
Alcaraz made the first real push in the second set, breaking early and moving ahead 3-1. Sinner answered quickly, steadied from the baseline, and closed the match by winning the final five games. Alcaraz finished with 45 unforced errors in the difficult conditions, while Sinner managed the moment with greater consistency.
The title extended one of the strongest runs of Sinner’s career. He has now won four straight Masters 1000 events, starting with Paris last fall and continuing through Indian Wells, Miami, and Monte Carlo. He also became only the second man after Novak Djokovic in 2015 to win Indian Wells, Miami, and Monte Carlo in the same season.
The victory also flipped the ranking race again. Sinner will start Monday on 13,350 points to Alcaraz’s 13,240 and begin his 67th career week at No. 1, moving one week ahead of Alcaraz in total time atop the ATP rankings. The two are now level on eight Masters 1000 titles each.
Monte Carlo had been one of the biggest clay titles missing from Sinner’s resume. Now it becomes another marker in a rivalry that looks set to shape the rest of the spring, with Madrid, Rome, and Roland Garros still to come.
