Sinner, Alcaraz's Opponent in Rome Final

It was the most anticipated match, and Rome will enjoy it this Sunday. Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner will face each other for the first time in 2025 in the final of the Italian capital's Masters 1,000. It will be the first encounter between the Spaniard and the Italian, the current world number one, since the final in Beijing last October and the first on clay since the Roland Garros semi-final in 2024.

Alcaraz, who defeated Lorenzo Musetti (6-3, 7-6 (4)) in the day's first semi-final, watched calmly on Friday as the Italian came back against Tommy Paul (1-6, 6-0, 6-3) to reach the final in his first event since a three-month doping ban.

In the two weeks in Rome, Sinner has lost only one set in the entire tournament and has been on the rise, from doubts against Mariano Navone, Jesper de Jong, and especially Francisco Cerúndolo, to playing one of the best matches of his life against Casper Ruud, the Madrid champion, in the quarter-finals, where he lost only one game. Although he struggled against Paul, who played a perfect first set, he managed to recover with two clean sets.

Sinner, the reigning champion of two majors – the last US Open and the Australian Open earlier this year, has not lost since that final in Beijing against Alcaraz and has a record of 42 wins and only one loss since August 2024.

Despite having played only two tournaments in 2025, due to an agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency following his positive test in Indian Wells, which sidelined him for three months, Sinner is one victory away from becoming the second-best player of the year in the race to Turin, only behind Alcaraz, and could extend his lead as number one to 2,180 points over the Spaniard.

If Alcaraz wins, he would reduce the gap with Sinner to 1,530 points, but he would not be able to catch him until at least after Wimbledon, as the Spaniard defends 4,000 points between Paris and London.

In Rome, Sinner also aims to be a prophet in his own land, as no Italian has won the men's tournament since Adriano Panatta in 1976, and none have reached the final since Panatta himself in 1978.

For Alcaraz, he had never progressed beyond the third round here, so this is already his best performance at the Foro Italico, where he can match Rafael Nadal (10), Conchita Martínez (4), Carlos Moyá (1), Félix Mantilla (1), Juan Carlos Ferrero (1), Álex Corretja (1), Emilio Sánchez-Vicario (1), Manuel Orantes (1), María José Martínez (1), and Lilí Álvarez (1) as Spanish champions of the third clay Masters 1,000 of the season.

The rivalry between Alcaraz and Sinner is dominated by the Spaniard, with six wins and four losses. The Spaniard won the last three encounters, in Beijing 2024, Roland Garros 2024, and Indian Wells 2024, while Sinner has not beaten him since the semi-finals in Beijing in 2023. Interestingly, they have only played two finals, the one in Umag, which Sinner won, and the aforementioned one in Beijing last year.

Alcaraz's performance in Rome allows him to appear in the Roland Garros draw as the second seed, surpassing Alexander Zverev, so he will avoid another duel against Sinner until a potential final.