The first big duel of the year, the one that pits the two best tennis players on the planet face to face, fell on the Italian’s side. Jannik Sinnerwhich snatched from the Spanish Carlos Alcaraz the crown of the Monte Carlo Masters 1,000 and, incidentally, the number one in the world, after winning 7-6 (5) and 6-3.
After twenty-two consecutive weeks, out of a total of 66, just as the transalpine had been, Jannik Sinner will once again be at the top of the circuit, on an impeccable run since he lost the semifinal of the Australian Open with Novak Djokovic and then fell in the Doha quarterfinals, beaten in the quarterfinals by the Czech Jakub Mensik. They have been their only losses so far this year.
Since then, the tennis player from San Candido, winner of four majors, has not stopped winning. He won the 1,000 Masters in Indian Wells and Miami before landing in the Principality, where he also gave the 22-year-old Spaniard no choice, who was worse than his rival in the decisive moments of the clash.
Sinner buried Alcaraz’s streak, which had seventeen consecutive victories on clay, and extended his so far in 2026, with as many others since he achieved success in the United States Masters 1,000 until now.
The transalpine, more accurate in the serve and who did not let Alcaraz consolidate the imbalances achieved with the breaks and escape on the scoreboard, was more stable. That gave him victory after two and a quarter hours.
The seventh victory in seventeen meetings between the two, the second on clay, which brings the victories in Masters 1,000 to twenty-one since winning in Paris last year until now in Monte Carlo.
Sinner sealed his most notable victory on clay. He took his particular revenge for that difficult-to-forget Roland Garros final.
The 24-year-old Italian joins Djokovic and Nadal, the only ones in history to win four consecutive Masters 1,000 titles. In addition, he shares with Djokovic the fact of winning the first three events at this level of the season.
Sinner, who started the match badly and was 2-0 down, turned the situation around in the first set, resolved in the tie break with a double fault from Murcia, adding his twenty-seventh title on the circuit and his ninth Masters 1,000.
The first player to accumulate three trophies so far this season, pressed the accelerator in the second, when he won five games in a row against the Spaniard.
Alcaraz was 3-1 and ended up losing 6-3 to bury his good streak of 26 wins and a single loss on land. Now the Spaniard has another setback, falling to number two in the ATP ranking. Sinner will begin his 67th week as world number.
