Rolex Monte Carlo Masters—Monaco
Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas captured his third-career Rolex Monte Carlo Masters title on Sunday in Monaco, defeating No. 8 seed Casper Ruud 6-1, 6-4.
In match that lasted one hour and 37 minutes, Tsitsipas used his heavy forehand to offset the rhythm of his Norwegian opponent.
Striking 23 winners, hitting three aces, winning 60 percent of his first serve points and breaking serve on four occasions, Tsitsipas notched his 11th career title and tied his head-to-head record with Ruud at two wins each.
Dropping out of the top 10 earlier this year, Tsitsipas will once again return to the elite group on Monday at No. 7 in the world.
Tsitsipas, who won in Monte Carlos in 2021 and 2022, also defeated No. 2 seed Jannik Sinner in the semifinals, No. 15 seed Karen Khachanov in the quarterfinals and No. 5 seed Alexander Zverev in the round of 16.
Tsitsipas Back as French Open Favourite
The 25-year-old, who has reached the finals of the French and Australian Opens, has now firmly established himself as a contender for the title at Roland Garros next month.
Ruud, who posted back-to-back finals showings at the French Open, picked up his first-ever victory over Novak Djokovic in the semifinals on Saturday. He had previously never won a set against Djokovic in five previous meetings.
Ruud, 25, has 10 career titles with nine of the them coming on clay-courts. He last won a title on Tour at the Estoril Open in Portugal in 2023.
Alcaraz Out of Barcelona
Two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz has withdrawn from the Barcelona Open in Spain next week due to an ongoing arm injury.
The 20-year-old, who won the BNP Paribas Open in March, suffered an arm injury after the Miami Open and also withdrew from the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters last week.
The event in Barcelona currently features 12-time champion Rafael Nadal and world No. 7 Andrey Rublev.
Djokovic without a Title in 2024
In unfamiliar territory, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic finds himself without a title going into the middle of April.
Usually holding two to three titles this time of year, Djokovic suffered a semifinals defeat at the Australian Open to Sinner, a third-round exit to Luca Nardi in Indian Wells and final-four dismissal to Ruud in Monaco.
The soon-to-be 37-year-old has shattered almost every record in tennis and will look to regroup at the Mutua Madrid Open in Spain in two weeks time.
Djokovic will be adamant on winning the only title that has eluded him in his career later this summer at the Olympic Games in Paris. A gold medal in France would cement Djokovic’s legacy as the only male player to win every single major title in the sport.
Watch all the action live next week from Barcelona, Munich and Bucharest on Tennis TV.
Get ready for the year’s second Major today, with great tickets to the French Open in Paris. Nadal is set to play his most successful event for perhaps the last time in his career.
