Stefanos Tsitsipas is back.
Back into the final of the Monte Carlos Masters for the third time in four years. Back into the world’s top 10, less than two months after relinquishing his place at the game’s top table for the first time since 2019. Back to defeating the very best in the sport, something he has not done in a long time.
On a day of high drama and high emotion on the Cote d’Azur, Tsitsipas became only the second player this season to defeat Jannik Sinner, recovering from a break down in the final set to prevail 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 against the Italian world No 2. It was the Greek’s best win by ranking since August 2022, when he overcame Daniil Medvedev, then ranked No 1 in the world, at the Cincinnati Masters.
“It was tennis at its highest level that I’ve been able to play,” said Tsitsipas. “Jannik was an extremely difficult opponent and I guess that also can be seen throughout the year so far, he’s been very consistent, and I could see that today in his game. He’s one of the toughest opponents that I have faced so far.
“To overcome that obstacle, to just find ways when there weren’t that many, I’m extremely proud of that. He gave me a very difficult game and the way I overcame it, and the way I managed those situations, was true excellence.”
Tsitsipas’s victory was the first act of a remarkable afternoon’s theatre that ended with the world’s top two both losing on the same day at a Masters 1000 event for the first time since 2010. Casper Ruud later claimed the biggest win of his career, advancing to his second Masters 1000 final with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 victory over Novak Djokovic.
“It’s, in my eyes, one of the all-time players to try to beat,” said Ruud. “Today I was able to do it. Something I can remember for the rest of my life and tell, hopefully, my kids in the future, and my grandkids when I’m getting old, that I beat Novak one time at least.”
In 11 previous meetings with top-three opposition, Ruud, a three-time grand slam finalist, had never won a set. But the 25-year-old Norwegian altered that pattern by winning four of the opening five games, and although his level dropped after taking the first set, he recovered to open up an identical 4-1 lead in the decider.
It was at that stage that Djokovic, who struggled to find his best tennis consistently, produced another determined surge, unleashing a mighty backhand winner and an even mightier roar on the way to claiming what looked likely to prove a vital break. Instead, having levelled the set, his game unravelled as he served to stay in the match. A sequence of unforced errors brought up three match points for Ruud, and although Djokovic steadied himself to fend off the first two, a double fault sealed his fate.
“I had my chances, but [the] last game was not great,” said Djokovic, who remains without a title this season. “Unforced errors and just he was solid, I think, until the last shot and deserved to win.
“My game was kind of up and down. The positive thing is that I managed to come back after losing the first set and really find the strength in the game. So there are positives to take away from this tournament, for sure, but of course [I’m] disappointed with the loss.”
Sinner too had cause for disappointment, although he refused to entertain thoughts of what might have been had the officials spotted a clear double fault by Tsitsipas as he faced a break point at 1-3 in the decider. A double break would surely have been decisive for Sinner, who had worked his way back into contention after a dominant start by Tsitsipas, but the mistake was missed by both the service line judge and the chair umpire, Aurélie Tourte, and the Greek went on to hold.
Sinner, who was afflicted by cramp in the closing stages, acknowledged that the missed call preyed on his mind as Tsitsipas reeled off the final four games.
“It’s tough, a tough one to swallow, because I was playing at some point great tennis,” said Sinner, whose only previous loss this season came against Carlos Alcaraz in Indian Wells. “I was playing well, tactically everything went in the right direction.
“Everyone can make mistakes unfortunately or fortunately. You know, also I can make mistakes. And it went like this.
“Then after, having cramps, it’s a consequence most likely of what happened, because it also goes in the nervous side of the brain and then after, it’s not easy to play. I tried my best still.”
Tsitsipas agreed that the missed call played a crucial role in the outcome.
“Double break down wouldn’t make things easier for me, and just holding serve there was crucial,” smiled the Greek. “I think the match would have turned out completely different if that had been called out. I will agree that it would have been pretty bad for me if that call was made.”
For the most part, however, Tsitsipas made his own luck, not least in a remarkable first set that saw him drop just two points behind his serve as he dictated the baseline exchanges. It was arguably the finest tennis he has produced on the red dirt since his run to the French Open final in 2021.
“It was one of the best first sets I have played on clay,” said Tsitsipas. “So much consistency and great quality of shot-making. Just pure, clean game from start to finish.”