Alcaraz outclasses Sinner for Rome title

Carlos Alcaraz was in no mood for an Italian fairytale on Sunday at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome, where he soared past home favourite Jannik Sinner to claim his seventh ATP Masters 1000 title.

The 22-year-old Spaniard delivered a classy display to prevail 7-6(5), 6-1 and snap the Italian’s 26-match winning streak. Alcaraz saved two set points in an absorbing opener before carrying that momentum through a one-hour, 44-minute victory to claim his 19th tour-level trophy, tying Sinner for the most among players born in the 2000s.

“I’m just really happy to get my first Rome [title], hopefully it’s not going to be the last one,” said Alcaraz. “The first thing I want to say is that I’m just really happy to see Jannik back at this amazing level. I’m sure it wasn’t easy for him coming back after three months and making the final of a Masters 1000 in his first tournament [back]. It’s something insane, so I have to congratulate him.

“I’m proud of myself, with the way I approached the match mentally. Tactically, I think I played pretty well from the first point until the last one. I didn’t do a rollercoaster… I maintained my good level throughout the whole match, so I’m really proud about everything I did today.”

By improving to 7-4 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Sinner, Alcaraz became the first player to claim three ATP Tour titles this season, having triumphed in Rotterdam and Monte-Carlo. Alcaraz, who owns a Tour-leading 30 wins in 2025, is just the fifth man to win all three clay-court ATP Masters 1000 events, joining Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Gustavo Kuerten and Marcelo Rios.