ATP Finals: Carlos Alcaraz beats Lorenzo Musetti, surpasses Jannik Sinner to secure year-end world No. 1 | Tennis News
Carlos Alcaraz secured the year-end world number one ranking by defeating Lorenzo Musetti 6-4, 6-1 at the ATP Finals in Turin, surpassing Jannik Sinner in the standings.Alcaraz, who claimed two Grand Slam titles this season, will maintain his top position in Monday’s rankings. His victory over Musetti also confirmed his first place in the Jimmy Connors Group at the season-ending tournament.With 70 match wins this season, Alcaraz has secured the top spot for 2025 regardless of his semi-final outcome on Saturday, even if Sinner wins the Finals title on home soil.Alcaraz appears determined to claim his first Finals victory and seems headed for another final matchup against Italy’s Sinner, who qualified first from the Bjorn Borg Group on Wednesday.“It means the world to me to be honest, the year number one is always a goal. To be honest at the beginning of the year I saw the number one really far away, Jannik being there winning almost every tournament he plays. For me it means everything. The work that we put in every day during the whole season, up and downs, comebacks from the tennis side. So I’m really proud of my team and myself.”
Alcaraz has dominated his encounters with Sinner this season, winning four out of five matches, all in finals of major tournaments, including two Grand Slams.The 22-year-old emerged victorious in a historic French Open final against Sinner in June but later lost to the Italian in the Wimbledon final.Alcaraz confidently handled Musetti, who will not participate in next week’s Davis Cup Final 8 in Bologna. Despite support from the passionate crowd, the world number nine, who only qualified after Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal, struggled in the second set.“I was tired, I knew it would be hard to recover from the battles of the last few months and above all the last few weeks… I needed a miracle today,” said Musetti, who had recently lost to Djokovic in the Athens final.Alex de Minaur joined Alcaraz in the semifinals after defeating Taylor Fritz in straight sets, 7-6 (7/3), 6-3.The Australian needed a two-set victory to advance from the group and will face Sinner in the semifinals. De Minaur secured his 43rd hard court victory of the season, leading the men’s tour in this category.“Couple days ago was one of the toughest days I’ve had in my career. I was in a very, very dark spot. I could tell you that I hated the sport. Here we are two days later and I’m feeling great about myself. It’s incredible.”De Minaur’s mindset improved following his personal struggle after Tuesday’s loss to Musetti.“Regardless of the result today, I had made peace with myself. That was a big, big moment. I knew the way I wanted to play. I was going to commit to it from the first point to the last. I was okay with the result not going my way. I had made peace with that. I just wanted to play my way.”Fritz’s tournament ended with the defeat, which lasted one hour and 35 minutes.
