Alcaraz, Sinner compete for Italian Open championship

Carlos Alcaraz continued to demonstrate his composure and determination on the evening of May 16 at the Italian Open in Rome, as he brilliantly secured a place in the final. The Spaniard had an impressive 6-3, 7-6(4) victory over the host nation’s Lorenzo Musetti. Alcaraz overcame Musetti’s high form, along with the unforgiving wind and the noisy Italian crowd to reach his 25th career final.

Alcaraz is maintaining stable form at the Italian Open (Photo: Getty).

"It was a really tough day today with the weather conditions, the strong wind made it very difficult to play. It's not about playing great, spectacular tennis, it's about playing smart, solid tennis, winning maximum points and waiting for opportunities to attack. I think I did that pretty well, I stayed mentally strong when things didn't go my way," Alcaraz said.

Alcaraz had withdrawn from the Masters 1000 in Madrid with an adductor injury, but appeared to be back in form in Rome. After his 19th win of the season, he enters tomorrow's final (May 18) on the back of a run of 14 wins in his last 15 matches, including a title in Monte Carlo and a final in Barcelona last month.

With the victory, which lasted 2 hours and 4 minutes, Alcaraz tied Stefan Edberg for the second-most wins in his first 100 matches at the ATP Masters 1000 level. The Spaniard currently holds a 77-23 record, including six titles. At just 22 years old, Alcaraz has reached the final in 6 of the 9 ATP Masters 1000 events he has entered.

Sinner celebrates his victory over Paul (Photo: Getty).

Jannik Sinner overcame a slow start and a major scare in the Italian Open semi-finals to beat Tommy Paul 1-6, 6-0, 6-3 and set up a final against Carlos Alcaraz.

Just 24 hours after beating Casper Ruud 6-0, 6-1 in the quarterfinals, Sinner looked unexpectedly unbalanced in the opening set against Paul. The Italian could not break down the American's solid defense, Paul forcing the world No. 1 into uncharacteristic errors that silenced much of the crowd at Campo Centrale.

Sinner, however, was riding a 25-match winning streak and was not backing down. After a disappointing first set, the 23-year-old tightened up his play, cutting down on errors and stepping up to attack. As the momentum shifted, the atmosphere in Rome was filled with energy as chants of Sinner’s name echoed throughout the stands.

Sinner said after the match: "I tried to stay mentally there. Today, the conditions were different, it was a lot colder than yesterday. I struggled a little bit with that and Paul beat me straight away. I tried to stay mentally, do something that could be more effective. Tennis can change quickly. Today, I proved that every moment is important and I'm happy to be in the final."

Sinner had a difficult start but showed great character at the right time (Photo: Getty).

After losing the first set quickly with only one game won, Sinner came back strongly in the second set and won it all. In the deciding set, after leading 3-0, Sinner let Paul reduce the score to 2-3. However, the world number one quickly broke the game to secure the advantage and then maintained a steady performance to win after 1 hour and 44 minutes, sending the home fans into a frenzy.

"Since the third round, I had a small blister on my foot, so I couldn't move well in some moments. Today I felt the blister was bigger than yesterday. It was a bit difficult but I'm not worried, this is normal in competition. I have to take care of this blister but there is no excuse. With adrenaline, I will have a lot of energy and will not be worried at all for the final."

With his 26th straight win, Sinner set up a final against Alcaraz. Sinner, playing his first tournament since winning the Australian Open in January, is bidding to become just the second Italian men's singles champion in Rome after Adriano Panatta won in 1976.

Sinner leads Alcaraz 4-6 in the head-to-head, with the upcoming final being their first meeting in 2025. On clay, the two are 1-1 in the head-to-head. Sinner beat the Spaniard in the 2022 Umag final, then Alcaraz overcame the Italian in last year's Roland Garros semi-final.

Sinner said of Alcaraz: "We know each other quite well. Playing against Alcaraz always creates a special feeling. I feel like we both know each other's playing style, so we have to prepare tactically. Of course, small things can change the game, this is a big challenge for me to see where I am."

The world number one added: "If I want to win, I definitely have to play at my best. Alcaraz played some incredible matches, so let's see what happens next. For me, getting to the final is great."

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/alcaraz-sinner-tranh-cup-vo-dich-italian-open-20250517073833145.htm