Carlos Alcaraz claims maiden Italian Open title with dominant win over Jannik Sinner

The Spanish star prevailed 7-6(5), 6-1 against world number one Sinner on Centre Court at the Foro Italico to claim his maiden title in Rome.

In a fiercely contested and serve-dominated opening set, Alcaraz saved two set points serving at 5-6, 15-40 to force a tiebreak.

Alcaraz took control of the tiebreak by racing to a 3-0 lead after hitting consecutive aces and he converted his second chance to win the set with a perfectly constructed point.

The tiebreak proved critical as Alcaraz dominated the second set as he broke a fading Sinner twice en route to sealing a resounding win.

With his triumph, Alcaraz ended Sinner's 26-match winning streak. The Italian had not lost since his defeat to Alcaraz in the 2024 China Open final in October.

The four-time Grand Slam champion has now won four straight matches against Sinner and leads the head-to-head 7-4.

Sinner's run to the Rome final was an impressive effort in his first tournament since he won his third major at the Australian Open in January. The 23-year-old was sidelined by a three-month suspension for failed doping tests.

Alcaraz will climb above Alexander Zverev into the world number two position when the ATP Rankings update next week.

Having already won the French Open and the Masters events in Monte Carlo and Madrid, Alcaraz's Italian Open crown means he has now secured every big title available on clay.

The 22-year-old has become just the fifth player to win three different Masters 1000 tournaments on clay courts, joining Marcelo Rios, Gustavo Kuerten, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

Rios and Kuerten both collected titles in Monte Carlo, Rome and Hamburg - the latter of which was a clay-court Masters tournament before Madrid switched to clay in 2009.

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