Jannik Sinner eases into Monte Carlo semi-finals, on course for possible final with Carlos Alcaraz
Sign up now: Get the biggest sports news in your inbox
Italy's Jannik Sinner celebrates winning his Monte-Carlo Masters quarter-final against Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-3, 6-4 at Monte-Carlo Country Club, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France, on April 10, 2026.
PHOTO: REUTERS
DeeperDive is a beta AI feature. Refer to full articles for the facts.
MONTE CARLO – Jannik Sinner brushed aside Felix Auger-Aliassime in straight sets on April 10 to set up a Monte Carlo Masters semi-final against Alexander Zverev.
The Italian, 24, extended his winning run at Masters 1000 events to 20 matches by seeing off his Canadian opponent 6-3, 6-4.
Said Sinner: “I feel like it was a step forwards today. It was a very tough match. I knew I had to get better in certain areas. The serve is not there yet, where I would love it (to be), but all things considered I’m very happy.
“Yesterday (against Tomas Machac) I was very tired. I recovered very well in this night’s sleep. Let’s see what’s coming tomorrow, but in any case, very happy to be back in the semis.”
Sinner has never won one of the elite tournaments on clay but will be a strong favourite when he plays Zverev, who edged out Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca, after winning their last seven meetings.
The world No. 2, who completed the “Sunshine Double” with wins at Indian Wells and the Miami Open, in still on track for a possible first clash of 2026 with Carlos Alcaraz in the final.
Sinner dropped just seven points on serve in a dominant opening set which he took courtesy of a break in the sixth game.
The four-time Grand Slam champion also powered through the second set, wrapping up his fifth consecutive win over seventh-ranked Auger-Aliassime.
Alcaraz extended his clay-court run of victories to 16 as he crushed Alexander Bublik 6-3, 6-0.
“I was playing aggressively and I played a great and solid match against a player that you don’t know what they will produce next,” Spain’s world No. 1 Alcaraz said.
Zverev sealed a battling 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 6-3 victory over Fonseca to reach the semi-finals in Monaco for the third time.
“It’s the first week on clay for all of us, so it’s not going to be easy. It’s not going to be the prettiest tennis,” Zverev said.
“That’s the most important thing this week – to show improvement and to finesse my aggressive game, because I’m struggling a little bit more on clay than I was on hard courts with that.”
World No. 3 Zverev is targeting his first ATP title since winning in Munich 12 months ago.
The German could also complete a career sweep of the clay-court Masters 1000 events, having previously won both the Italian Open and Madrid Open twice.
Big-hitting 19-year-old Fonseca was playing in his first Masters quarter-final but pushed his opponent for long periods.
Three-time Grand Slam runner-up Zverev broke in the 11th game and then served out the opening set to love, before breaking again at the start of the second.
Fonseca reeled off four straight games from 3-1 down to tee up the chance to serve for the set, but he failed to take the opportunity.
The world No. 40 found his rhythm in the tiebreak though, reeling off a string of magnificent groundstrokes to force a decider.
But Fonseca could not maintain that level as Zverev improved.
The 28-year-old broke in the sixth game and confidently served out victory. AFP
