Carlos Alcaraz has done it again: for the second year in a row, the young Spaniard has won the French Open, defeating Jannik Sinner in the finals at Roland Garros, 4-6, 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(3), 7-6(2). Alcaraz, 22, needed all five sets to get the job done, but he managed to claim his fifth Grand Slam title in a match that lasted five and a half hours.
Neither Sinner, the top seed, nor Alcaraz, the second seed, had lost a Grand Slam final before Sunday. And at first, it looked as though Alcaraz was going to be the one to earn his first loss, with Sinner taking the first two sets, albeit narrowly. But Alcaraz battled back, securing a third set win and a fourth-set tiebreak over Sinner to force a fifth and final set.
Alcaraz still needs a win at the Australian Open, which will have to wait until next year as he fell in the quarterfinals of this year’s tournament. But with five Grand Slam victories to his name, he’ll go to Wimbledon with plenty of momentum.
In the opening frame, Sinner got out to a quick lead. He won on 68 percent of his first serves, and scored two breaks on four attempts. That number went up to 75 percent of his first serves converted in the second set, and it was looking like he might have a quick victory.
Alcaraz battled back though, and took the third set and was well on his way to winning the fourth when Sinner re-asserted himself and forced a tiebreak. He couldn’t hold there though, and Alcaraz wound up taking it at 7-3, forcing a fifth and final set that went to a tiebreak, which Alcaraz won with just a little more left in the tank.
Sinner, 23, will go forward still hoping to secure his second Grand Slam of the season and fourth overall when things shift to the grass courts of Wimbledon next month. He’s never won at Wimbledon, still needing Slam victories there and at Roland Garros. Alcaraz has won twice at Wimbledon, including the last two.
Sinner’s route to the final included wins over a tough unseeded second-round opponent in Richard Gasquet, and another in the surprise quarterfinals participant, Alexander Bublik. As far as seeded competition, he beat No. 17 Andrey Rublev in the Round of 16, and No. 6 Novak Djokovic in the semifinals. The match with Djokovic was particularly impressive, with Sinner downing the legend in straight sets.
Alcaraz’s route to the final included a pair of seeded Americans: No. 13 Ben Shelton and No. 12 Tommy Paul. Alcaraz beat Shelton in the Round of 16 and Paul in the quarterfinals, before facing the eighth-seeded Lorenzo Musetti in the semifinals. Musetti had to retire from the match in the fourth set after taking the first and dropping the next two.
Both the men’s and women’s finals at Roland Garros featured the top two seeds in action. On the women’s side, American Coco Gauff, the second seed, earned her first French Open title by downing Aryna Sabalenka, the top seed, in the finals.
Up next for most involved: some grass court action leading up to the 2025 Wimbledon Championships at the end of the month and through the first two weeks of July.
