The first two in the world ranking, eliminated in the semifinals of Monte Carlo: Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner They lost their respective matches against Casper Ruud (10th) and Stefanos Tsitsipas (12th), who will be the protagonists of Sunday’s final in the first Masters 1000 of the brick dust season.
Djokovic will have to keep waiting to lift a trophy this season. This time it was surpassed 6-4, 1-6 and 6-4 by Ruudwith whom he had never lost a set until now, while Tsitsipas defeated Sinner 6-4, 3-6 and 6-4.
He Greek will aim for a third title in Monte Carloafter those he achieved in 2021 and 2022, while Ruud will play his first final in the tournament.
Until now, Ruud had the semifinal he lost in 2021 against Andrey Rublev as his best result on the clay of Monaco. In Masters 1000 it will be the second final for Ruudafter the one he lost in Miami in 2022.
Djokovic struggled in Saturday’s match from the start, conceding a break, which allowed his opponent to take the initiative.
At the beginning of the second set, the world No. 1 seemed to show fatigue, with gestures of certain exhaustion and puffing during the change of sides, on a hot day in the Principality. Despite this, Djokovic was able to dominate the second set against a Ruud who seemed to get nervous and committed double faults.
In the decisive set, the Norwegian started strong, quickly distancing himself with 3-0. “Nole” reacted and balanced 4-4. Ruud won with his serve to go 5-4 and then, with a break as at the beginning of the match, he left the duel for a decision at 6-4.
Tsitsipas, with his 6-4, 3-6 and 6-4 victory against Sinner, reached a third final in Monte Carlo. And whenever he reached the last match of the tournament he then lifted the trophy.
The former world number 3 had not beaten a player as highly ranked in the ATP rankings as Sinner since he beat Russian Daniil Medvedev, then world number 2, at Roland Garros in 2021. Nor has he played in a Masters 1000 final. dust from Rome in 2022.
On Saturday he had in front of him a Sinner that only one player, the Spanish Carlos Alcaraz, had managed to beat until this year, in the Indian Wells semifinals. The Italian, sensation of the year, has 25 victories and three titles this season (Australian Open, Rotterdam and Miami). Last year he had also reached the semifinals in Monte Carlo, although clay was the Italian’s preferred surface.
Tsitsipas, on the other hand, does tend to feel good on that surface, as attested to by his two titles in Monte Carlo and his runner-up finish at Roland Garros in 2021.
He has the chance on Sunday to become the fifth player of the ‘Open era’ [desde 1968] to win at least three times the tournament Monte Carloafter Ilie Nastase (3), Björn Borg (3), Thomas Muster (3) and, above all, Rafael Nadal (11).
Source: Ambito
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