Carlos Alcaraz clinched his first Monte Carlo Masters title with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 victory over an injury-plagued Lorenzo Musetti, bouncing back from a slow start to dominate the final.
Alcaraz struggled early, dropping his opening two service games and misfiring on his forehand, allowing Musetti to take the first set. However, the Spaniard regrouped in the second set, winning five straight games to seize control.
He then powered through the final set, breaking Musetti early and sealing the win in a dominant display.
Musetti, who was aiming for his first Masters 1000 title, began showing signs of a right-leg injury in the third set and had difficulty moving. Despite receiving treatment, the 23-year-old Italian could not match Alcaraz’s physicality and shot selection.
After the match, Alcaraz expressed sympathy for his opponent, saying, “This is not the way I want to win a match. I really feel sorry for him.” Reflecting on his win, he added, “Just really happy to have won the Monte Carlo for the first time. It’s been a really difficult week with a lot of difficult situations. I’m really proud of myself, how I dealt with everything.”
The win marked Alcaraz’s third consecutive clay-court final, following his French Open triumph and Olympic silver medal last year. He will rise to number two in the ATP rankings, pushing Alexander Zverev down.
For Musetti, the loss was a setback, but he still gained ranking points, moving up to 11th, and vowed to come back stronger.
“It was probably one of my best tournaments so far,” he said. “I’m disappointed I couldn’t finish the match in the best way for the crowd. You deserve it, so I will keep going and try and come back for revenge.”
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