Monte-Carlo Masters: Jannik Sinner matches 'big three' milestone with 20th successive Masters 1000 win

Jannik Sinner added yet another accolade to his CV with his 6-3 6-4 win over Felix Auger-Aliassime to become just the fourth man to win 20 successive Masters 1000 matches, joining Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafa Nadal.

The Italian bounced back to form after breaking his 37-set winning streak in the fourth round against Tomas Machac to dismiss the Canadian in straight sets and confirm his spot in the semi-finals.

He also continued his charge to take back the world No 1 spot after Carlos Alcaraz dethroned Sinner in November last year and has held onto the top spot.

“I feel like it was a step forwards today,” said Sinner, when asked how he felt compared to his win against Machac.

“It was a very tough match. I knew I had to get better in certain areas. The serve is not there yet, where I would love it [to be], but all things considered I’m very happy.

“Yesterday I was very tired. I recovered very well in this night’s sleep. Let’s see what’s coming tomorrow, but in any case, very happy to be back in the semis.”

He will play Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals after the German fought hard to defeat Brazil’s Joao Fonseca 7-5 6-7 (3-7) 6-3.

Alcaraz to play home town hero Vacherot in semi-finals

The defending champion, Carlos Alcaraz, eased past Alexander Bublik 6-3 6-0 to also ensure his space in the semi-final as he looks to defend his place from the hungry Sinner in the world rankings.

He moved past the Kazakhstani while dropping just three games to continue his comeback after a disappointing early exit in Miami in the hands of Sebastian Korda.

It was the first time Alcaraz and Bublik played each other in an official tournament, with the Spaniard dominating and boosting his confidence.

“I started the match pretty well,” Alcaraz said. “I had points to be two breaks up and didn’t make it and then I lost a bit of the feeling on the ball.

“I had to run side to side a lot, had to defend and then a few games gave me a lot of confidence in the match.

“I was playing aggressively and I played a great and solid match against a player that you don’t know what they will produce next. I am happy to get through and to play another semi-final here.”

He will play home town hero Valentin Vacherot in the semi-finals after he saved 13 break points before downing Alex de Minaur 6-4 3-6 6-3 ‌in front of roaring fans and became the first Monegasque player to reach the last-four at Monte Carlo.

“It’s such an honour to be ⁠part of the semi-finals with the three best players of the past few years,” Vacherot said. “I can’t wait to play Carlos in my hometown, it’s amazing.

“The guys in ‌the crowd chanting, they’re my best friends from when I was nine or 10 years old. It’s rare for a player to have this chance to have this many people around.

“I’m so lucky ⁠to have a tournament in my club.”

Vacherot is projected to break into the top 20 when the ATP rankings are updated on Monday. Alcaraz was left impressed by the 27-year-old’s rise.

Could Monte-Carlo Masters be key to McIlroy’s success at The Masters?

After finishing his Masters second round with a six-stroke lead, Rory McIlroy spoke to the media about his plans for the lead-up to Saturday’s third round.

“I’ll probably try to keep my mind off it. That distraction is usually a good thing for me, especially with a late tee time and the lead,” defending champion McIlroy said in his press conference. “So yeah, there are actually two really good semi-finals at Monte-Carlo in the tennis, so I’ll watch that.

“I think it’s Sinner and Zverev, and Vacherot and Alcaraz, so I’ll watch those. We’ve been watching the tennis early in the mornings, so I’ll do that.”

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