Alcaraz claims maiden Rome Masters title beating no. 1 Sinner again!

Carlos Alcaraz has won his first career Italian Open title, defeating top-ranked Jannik Sinner in the final of the ATP 1000 event in Rome on Sunday. Alcaraz secured the championship with a 7-6(5), 6-1 victory over the Italian favorite before a large home crowd at the Foro Italico. Alcaraz expressed satisfaction with his performance, stating “I'm proud of myself” felt he approached the match well mentally and tactically pretty well from start to finish, and maintained his level during the whole match.

The win over Sinner is significant, as Alcaraz is now the only player to have beaten Sinner more than once since the start of last year, and he has won their last four encounters. This victory also snapped Sinner's 26-match winning streak. Alcaraz now leads their career head-to-head series 7-4.

The match featured a tight first set where Sinner held two set points at 6-5 but couldn't convert, with Alcaraz winning the tiebreaker after hitting two aces. Alcaraz then cruised through the second set. On his third match point, Alcaraz sealed the win with a stretch volley winner. Alcaraz finished the match with 19 winners compared to Sinner's seven, and had just one more unforced error than his opponent (31-30), with half of Sinner's errors came from his backhand.

Sinner tried to be first Italian to win Italian Open since 1976 but...

Sinner, the home favorite and top-ranked player, was playing in his first tournament since reportedly winning his third Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January. He was returning after a three-month doping ban where he agreed to a settlement with WADA in February. Reaching the final was considered a remarkable achievement, with Alcaraz calling it "something insane." Sinner, who attempted to be the first Italian male winner in Rome since 1976 and complete a sweep after Jasmine Paolini's women's singles win, expressed pride in his effort despite the loss.

Winning in Rome adds another major clay-court title to Alcaraz's resume. Four-time Grand Slam champion will move back up to No. 2 in the ATP world rankings on Monday. This spring, Alcaraz reached his third final in three clay-court events, having won the Monte Carlo Masters and been runner-up at the Barcelona Open before withdrawing from the Madrid Open due to injury. By winning in Rome, Alcaraz becomes just the fifth man in history to win all three Masters 1000 clay events (Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Rome).

Alcaraz's dominant performance against the world number one in the Rome final solidifies his status as a strong favorite heading into the French Open, which begins next Sunday.