Sinner and Alcaraz Advance to Quarterfinals at Monte-Carlo Masters

Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner ended his streak of 37 consecutive set wins at the Masters 1000 level after a challenging match against Tomas Machac, but still managed to secure a spot in the quarterfinals of the Monte-Carlo Masters with a 6-1, 6-7 (3-7), 6-3 victory. Sinner had previously achieved the Sunshine Double without dropping a set, winning titles at Indian Wells and the Miami Open, and also claimed the Paris Masters title last year. Despite struggling with fatigue, Sinner recovered to defeat his Czech opponent and continues his pursuit to dethrone current world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz. "Not every day is the same, I was struggling a bit, I was a bit tired," Sinner stated. "I felt great before the match, but in the second set, I had trouble finding the right energy." Sinner will face Felix Auger-Aliassime in the quarterfinals after the sixth seed progressed when Casper Ruud retired due to injury. Alcaraz also dropped a set before securing a 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 win over Argentina's Tomas Martin Etcheverry to continue his title defense. The pressure is on Alcaraz, as a potential title win for Sinner could result in him reclaiming the world No. 1 spot. "I was feeling the ball really well in the first set, hitting it almost perfectly," Alcaraz said. "But in the second set, I started playing well too, and had opportunities to break his serve, but I didn't take them." Alcaraz will play Alexander Bublik in the quarterfinals, while 19-year-old Joao Fonseca eased past Matteo Berrettini 6-3, 6-2 to reach the quarterfinals of a Masters 1000 event for the first time. Alexander Zverev defeated Zizou Bergs 6-2, 7-5 to reach the tournament's last eight for the first time since 2022. Other winners include Alex De Minaur, Valentin Vacherot, and Lilli Tagger. The second and third seeds, Ekaterina Alexandrova and Liudmila Samsonova, were knocked out of the Linz WTA 500 tournament. Meanwhile, Holger Rune will return to action at next month's Hamburg Open after undergoing Achilles surgery in October.