Carlos Alcaraz’s actions say it all hours before Jannik Sinner showdown in Monte Carlo | Tennis | Sport

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner will face off for the first time this season, as they do battle for the Monte Carlo Masters title and the world No. 1 ranking. The young rivals have already met 16 times on the tour – including six matches last year – and Alcaraz leads their head-to-head 10-6. But the Spanish superstar knows that he can’t take any chances against his greatest rival.

Alcaraz is the defending champion in Monte Carlo and is admittedly more comfortable on clay than Sinner. But the current world No. 1 is well aware that he can lose to the Italian on any surface, and has taken extra steps to prepare for their 17th meeting, and first of 2026.

After beating Monegasque ace Valentin Vacherot in Saturday’s semi-final, Alcaraz got straight back out on the practice courts with his coach, Samuel Lopez, with the championship match less than 24 hours away.

Alcaraz later admitted that his level wasn’t exactly where he wanted it to be, despite a 6-4 6-4 victory over Vacherot, and he knew he had to improve if he wanted to beat Sinner. “Well, to be honest, I just left the court, and just surprisingly I saw Samuel over there, and he told me, I reserved the court for 15, 20 minutes, hit some balls, you know, to be ready for tomorrow,” the top seed explained.

“I have been, like, playing in a style that, for example, today, I didn’t hit the ball as good as I wanted, to be honest, and a couple of serves, as well, that I just finished the match not serving that well. And it is, I would say, the best thing I could do, like, playing for tournaments, I left the court feeling great, feeling the ball great for tomorrow. So that’s why.”

This will be Alcaraz and Sinner’s first meeting since they faced off in the final of the ATP Finals in November, a tournament staged on indoor hard courts – Sinner’s best surface. Now, they’re back on the Spaniard’s preferred surface. But Alcaraz knows it’s not a given that he’ll win on the clay.

The world No. 1 said: “I think he said it, that clay court, it’s not his favourite surface. His style, I would say, suits much better to other surfaces. But the level he’s playing on clay, it’s great. That he plays better on the hard court or grass, doesn’t matter, or doesn’t mean that he plays really bad tennis on clay.

“But I just, I would say, I feel more natural, I feel more comfortable playing on clay because of my style of tennis. But, you know, let’s see. I can lose against him in every surface, you know, in every tournament, so I know that I have to be ready. I know that I have to play my best tennis if I want to beat him. So let’s see what’s gonna happen.

“If I’m feeling favourite or not, I would say against him, there is not a favourite in any matches. It depends about what or who’s playing the best that day. So I’m super excited about who’s going to be the best.”

Should Alcaraz win, he will successfully defend his Monte Carlo Masters crown and retain the top spot in the rankings. Sinner, meanwhile, can lift his biggest career title on the clay with a win on Sunday, and would return to world No. 1 for the first time since November.

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