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Carlos Alcaraz defeated fellow Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-6 (2), 6-4 on Saturday to reach the final of the Monte-Carlo Masters in Monaco.

It is the first ATP Masters 1000 final for Alcaraz, the No. 2 seed, since he won at Indian Wells in March 2023. He is a 17-time tour winner with four grand slams to his credit.

“It’s been a long time,” Alcaraz said of the wait between Masters 1000 finals. “I just had to be patient and believe that this moment was going to come again. Sometimes the people are not patient, they want me to make the final in every tournament. I’m really happy to give them the chance to watch one of my finals again.”

Alcaraz fans likely had a few jitters in the first set when he couldn’t convert three set points. Davidovich Fokina broke his opponent to get back on serve, which ultimately led to a tiebreaker in the 65-minute set won by Alcaraz.

In the second set, Alcaraz needed multiple match points to close out the contest, unable to break Davidovich Fokina’s serve in the eighth game of the set to secure one of his first four match points. Serving up 5-4, Alcaraz won on his sixth match point.

Alcaraz thrives on the clay courts, winning the French Open and taking the silver medal in the Paris Olympics in 2024. In the final, he will meet No. 13 seed Lorenzo Musetti of Italy, who defeated No. 8 Alex de Minaur of Australia 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4) in the second semifinal on Saturday.

Musetti, 23, was put on notice ahead of the Sunday final.

“I think I played really good tennis from the beginning until the last point,” Alcaraz said of the contest with Davidovich Fokina. “I tried to take the chances he gave me in the match. He saved a lot of break points and match points, but I’m really happy to [have] thought about myself. The most important thing is that I’m feeling great physically.”

For Musetti, the final will be his first at the ATP Masters 1000 level. He will be seeking his third tour title.

In the second set, de Minaur was serving tied 4-4 when Musetti came through with one of his five service breaks of the day to take a 5-4 lead, then closed the set on his own serve.

–Field Level Media