Monte Carlo, razor’s edge final: Jannik Sinner ahead of Carlos Alcaraz

Jannik Sinner won the first set of the Monte Carlo Masters 1000 final: the Azzurro beat rival Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 at the tie-break, taking him ahead in the last act of the Monegasque competition, which was very hard-fought and played on a razor’s edge.

A very balanced first set, in not easy playing conditions, conditioned by the wind. The Azzurro struggles to get into gear with his first serve and suffers a break right away in the second game, but reacts immediately by counter-breaking the Murcia champion in the third game.

Despite the difficulty with his first serve, the Alto Adige player gains confidence in the service turns and risks less, while undermining with an aggressive attitude Alcaraz when the Iberian is beating him. The Spaniard nullifies two break points in the fifth and ninth games, and the set is decided at the tie-break.

At the tie-breaks, also very balanced, Sinner rises to 5-2, Alcaraz comes back up to 5-5 by exploiting his service game, then Jannik makes it 7-5 closing a hard-fought set.

Sinner has won two tournaments so far in 2026: Indian Wells and Miami, completing the Sunshine Double for the first time in his career without losing a single set. The Azzurro redeemed himself after a below-expectation start to the year, particularly after losing to Novak Djokovic in the semifinals of the Australian Open, later won by archrival Carlos Alcaraz. The South Tyrolean and the Murcian only match number 17 on the ATP circuit.