Jannik Sinner will look to win his third ATP event in a row when he steps onto court in Monte Carlo.
After an unconvincing start to the year, Sinner has clicked into gear and recently became only the eighth man in tennis history to complete the ‘Sunshine Double’.
Carlos Alcaraz has also been extremely successful at the start of this year, completing the ‘Career Grand Slam’ at the Australian Open and winning the Qatar Open title.
How will Carlos Alcaraz fare after receiving this draw in Monte-Carlo?
It's far easier than Jannik Sinner's…
Despite the success of both Alcaraz and Sinner, the world’s highest-ranked players have not contested a match this year.
Jannik Sinner offered his thoughts on the matter ahead of his first match in Monaco.
Jannik Sinner says he has missed playing Carlos Alcaraz on the ATP Tour
While being interviewed by France TV Sport during his pre-tournament media duties, Sinner was asked whether he has missed playing Alcaraz on the Tour.
“Yes, I do, I really do,” Sinner admitted.
“He’s a player, a rival, who pushes me to give my all… but we all know that if we want to compete, we have to get to the final.
“And the road to the final is very difficult because all the players are tough to beat. So we’ll see how it goes here.”
As has become customary on the Tour, Sinner and Alcaraz can only play each other in the Monte Carlo final because they are the top two seeds at the event.
Sinner will begin his Monte Carlo campaign against Ugo Humbert, who defeated French youngster Moise Kouame on Sunday.
Are you still confident Jannik Sinner can win the Monte-Carlo Masters after receiving this TOUGH draw?
Alcaraz, meanwhile, will play Sebastian Baez or three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka in the Monte Carlo second round.
What Novak Djokovic said about Jannik Sinner at the 2021 Monte Carlo Masters
Jannik Sinner made his Monte Carlo debut at the 2021 event.
The Italian defeated Albert Ramos Vinolas on debut, before losing 4-6, 2-6 to world number one Novak Djokovic.
After defeating the youngster, Djokovic admitted that he had been impressed by Sinner’s professionalism.
“Well, I don’t like to compare myself to even my younger self, even more with somebody else,” Djokovic said during the post-match press conference.
“I think he’s very talented player. He has established already himself at I feel like high level of the men’s game, playing Masters finals, winning already a couple of tournaments, for his age.
“I think what impresses me the most is his professionalism, his dedication to the everyday routines that he has to endure in order to play at such high level. I think this is why the consistency of his results is there.
“For a young player like this, what we normally would see and expect is he got a couple of good weeks here and there, but the consistency is not there until the young player matures.
“With him it’s different. He really has a good mindset. He seems more mature for his age than the rest of the guys with the way he’s playing and training. He’s got a good tempo. From the baseline he makes the other guy feel he’s got to run a lot.
“I like his game. I think he has an all-around game. He can play equally well on all the surfaces, which he has proven.
“Obviously there’s always things to improve. But he’s in good hands. Riccardo is someone that I know very well. He was my coach when I was younger, around his age. I definitely wish him all the best. I’m sure the bright future is ahead of him.”
Sinner has gone on to lead Djokovic in their head-to-head record. The Italian has now won six of their 11 meetings on the ATP Tour.
However, Djokovic won their last match, defeating Sinner in five sets in the 2026 Australian Open semi-finals.
