Carlos Alcaraz makes a stark confession after he is beaten by Jannik Sinner to lose world No 1 ranking
Carlos Alcaraz was forced to make a candid confession after he was beaten in straight sets back Jannik Sinner in the final of the Monte Carlo Masters, as he conceded his big rival played better than him in the final.
The result ensured Sinner would take over as world No 1 after closing the huge gap Alcaraz had opened up on him after his Australian Open win in January, with Sinner closing in on Alcaraz in their head-to-head record as he trails his big rival 10-7.
Sinner has now won four ATP Masters 1000 events after clinching the titles in Paris at the back end of 2026 and winning the first three Masters 1000 events of 2026.
The Italian now has plenty of momentum heading into the clay court season and Alcaraz was forced to concede he was beaten by the better man as he surrendered his Monte Carlo title.
“I would say that the important moments, the important points, I didn’t play well,” said Alcaraz after his 7-6[5], 6-3 defeat.
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“I think I had so many opportunities in the match that I didn’t take it. So many games, points, so many 15-30, love-30. I think the first tie-break, I didn’t play well and I think he just played unbelievable tennis when it mattered. I think that was the key today.”
“I think today was really difficult conditions, because I just consider myself that I play great tennis when there is a lot of wind. Today’s wind was a little bit tricky because it wasn’t in just one direction.
“It was twirling around. One point you play a point with the wind helping and the next point it was totally opposite. So it was tricky to understand where the wind goes.
“We have seen Jannik’s level on clay and I think he’s been improving a lot year by year.
“I think he’s reaching a level on clay that is going to be really dangerous for everybody. I’m not surprised at all, because we could see last year in Roland Garros the level he played. He just played better than me.”
Sinner spoke to the media after the match and suggested the gusty conditions in Monte Carlo contributed to a higher than expected number of errors from both players.
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“It was a very strange match, because it was very windy. The conditions were not warm, which, you know, the ball is less bouncy that [makes it] a little bit easier to play tennis in general,” said Sinner.
“I think I was serving well in the important moments in the first set. In the tiebreak, I was very, very accurate. And in the second set was up and down a little bit from both [of us]. We both were slightly tired, because, you know, at the end of the tournament it’s normal that you feel this way. A lot of tension for both of us.
“It was a good match from him and also from my side. Small things where he is gonna improve, for sure, for the next match against me, and I have to be ready for that. But now I also want to enjoy this moment.”
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