Jannik Sinner is the new king of Monte Carlo. The Italian took the crown from Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday, 7-6(5), 6-3, and will regain the top spot in the ATP rankings at the expense of the Spaniard. Sinner’s achievement is all the more remarkable considering that just 14 days ago he completed the ‘Sunshine Double’ without dropping a set. The last four Masters 1000 tournaments have been his. “Great job, congratulations,” said the dethroned player at the net.It was windy and cloudy in the sky over the Principality of Monaco. This did not prevent the organisation from following its protocol and making the protagonists jump to the centre of the Rainier III court, with the flags of their respective countries and having to listen to the local anthem.Sinner was the first to win the toss and put the pressure on his opponent’s serve, something he does not like to do. Alcaraz then accepted the challenge and went 2-0 up.
He knew the importance that the serve was going to have in the final. That’s why he went to practice it after the semifinal with Valentin Vacherot. He suffered a break in the third game that brought the score back to level
He was not adjusting with his backhand and new instructions were coming from his bench from Samuel Lopez: “Crouch and go forward with force, forget about shooting upwards.”
The phenomenon from El Palmar saved a 2-3 ball and another at 4-5 against a crowd that was clearly in favor of Sinner. He resides in Monaco and the proximity to Italy was also a plus for him.
Among the celebrities present was George Russell, the British Formula One driver who loves tennis because of Wimbledon. When Alcaraz managed to dictate with his forehand, it was he who ruled the court, as when he was inspired with the drop shot.
Samu told his pupil, “Let’s go for it,” in the 10th game of the first set. There was so much equality that the outcome was bound to come in the tiebreaker. Carlitos had a 6-5 and 0-30 to avoid it
The importance of service
Sinner took a comfortable 5-2 lead in the tie-break and his opponent approached his: “It’s the big difference Samu, that he puts all first and I none“.
The Italian had two set points, at 6-4. He missed the first one with an erratic mid-court shot, which is not exactly his comfort zone. A double fault by Alcaraz did the rest.
The Monte Carlo Country Club workers then took the opportunity to water the clay. The defending champion quickly looked for a reaction with a 15-40. That train escaped him. He went back on the attack immediately afterwards, finding a hole where there was none to connect a passing shot that gave him the 2-1 lead.
The seven-time Grand Slam champion breathed a sigh of relief when the scoreboard read 3-1. Sinner, who surprised with the odd drop shot, looked a little more tired. But he was so eager to win that he ended up doing so
“Scratch it a little bit, but without forcing it. Now really first. When you see the gap, pull it with conviction,” Lopez told Carlitos. His player gave up his serve for the second time for 3-3. He would lose it again in the eighth round. His condemnation.
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