One man stands between Stefanos Tsitsipas and back-to-back Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters titles on Sunday. The unseeded Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, playing in his first ATP Tour final, has already beaten World No. 1 Novak Djokovic this week in Monaco. One more upset could surpass that as the biggest win of the 22-year-old’s career. 

In the doubles final, two longtime pairings and 2021 Nitto ATP Finals competitors will seek their first title of the 2022 season as top seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury face sixth-seeded Colombians Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah.

View Schedule | View Singles Draw | View Doubles Draw

[3] Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina

After coming from behind to win a late-night classic against Diego Schwartzman in the quarter-finals, Tsitsipas recovered quickly to dominate Alexander Zverev, 6-4, 6-2, in the semis. That efficient result should leave him in good stead for the last leg of his title defence. 

“It’s going to take a little bit more,” said Tsitsipas, looking ahead to his third ATP Head2Head meeting with Davidovich Fokina. “He’s on a good run, in a good rhythm. I’ve played him before, he’s a good opponent, I’ve had big battles against him and I’m going to try and be as ready as possible.

“I know he’s improved from before and I’m going to have that in the back of my head, to produce the best tennis that I can.”

Tsitsipas and Davidovich Fokina met one year ago in the Monte Carlo quarter-finals, with the Spaniard retiring after dropping a 7-5 opening set. Their second meeting came in February, when Tsitsipas scored a 7-5, 6-7(1), 6-4 win in Rotterdam.

‘Foki’ is the first unseeded Monte Carlo finalist since Dusan Lajovic in 2019. He advanced to his first ATP Tour final in his fourth semi-final attempt, battling past Grigor Dimitrov, 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-3.

“I am so, so happy to be in the final. It is a dream come true,” Davidovich Fokina said following his semi-final win. “When I was a kid I was dreaming about this day.”

After describing the hard work he and his team have put in since preseason in December, he later added: “Now I am in the final, I will enjoy it and try my best.”

The Spaniard has already knocked off three ATP Masters 1000 champions on the way to the final: Djokovic, Taylor Fritz and Dimitrov. If he can take out a fourth, he will achieve the rare feat of winning his first tour-level title at that elite level.

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[1] Rajeev Ram (USA) / Joe Salisbury (GBR) vs. [6] Juan Sebastian Cabal (COL) / Robert Farah (COL)

In a doubles final well-deserving of center stage on Court Rainier III, two multiple Grand Slam-winning teams seek their best result of the 2022 season.

These teams have met five times before, with four of those matches requiring either a Match Tie-break or a third-set tie-break. Ram and Salisbury, who lead the ATP Head2Head series 4-1, took all four of those tie-breaks, including three in 2021 (Eastbourne, Wimbledon, Nitto ATP Finals). 

But Cabal and Farah won the only final contested between the teams, scoring a straight-sets win to take the 2021 Vienna title.

Both teams have dropped just one set en route to the championship match, setting up for a grand finale on Sunday.

SCHEDULE – Sunday, April 17 

COURT RAINIER III start 11:30 a.m.
[1] R. Ram (USA) / J. Salisbury (GBR) vs. [6] J. Sebastian Cabal (COL) / R. Farah (COL)

Not Before 2:30 p.m.
[3] S. Tsitsipas (GRE) vs. A. Davidovich Fokina (ESP)

Stefanos Tsitsipas conjured up more Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters magic on Saturday to take out second seed Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals and move within one win of a successful defence of his 2021 title.

The World No. 5 struck the ball cleanly throughout, and while Zverev responded with some fierce groundstrokes of his own it was the Greek who produced the goods at crucial moments in a 6-4, 6-2 victory at the ATP Masters 1000 event.

Tsitsipas was involved in one of the most topsy-turvy matches of the year late on Friday night as he battled past Diego Schwartzman in a Monte Carlo classic in the quarter-finals. The Greek showed no signs of fatigue from that battle and also avoided the lapses of concentration that had blighted his performance against Schwartzman to see victory through against Zverev in 75 minutes.

“It was good,” said Tsitsipas in his on-court interview. “I don’t know whether the long match gave me some rhythm, but I was able to play good tennis today. I’m happy with the level I was able to execute and come up with some good ideas on the court.”

The third seed’s opponent in Sunday’s final will be Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, after the Spaniard reached a maiden ATP Tour final with a 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-3 win over Grigor Dimitrov earlier on Saturday.

Tsitsipas will take a 2-0 ATP Head2Head series lead over the World No. 46 into Sunday’s clash, but the Greek is not taking anything for granted against a player who has also beaten World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and Indian Wells champion Taylor Fritz this week.

“It’s going to take a little bit more,” said Tsitsipas. “He’s on a good run, in a good rhythm. I’ve played him before, he’s a good opponent, I’ve had big battles against him and I’m going to try and be as ready as possible.

“I know he’s improved from before and I’m going to have that in the back of my head, to produce the best tennis that I can.”

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Tsitsipas looked dialled in from the start against Zverev on Court Rainier III and appeared to have the upper hand for most of the opening set as he struck the ball sweetly off both wings. The German fought hard to twice recover from a break down but Tsitsipas produced a tenth game full of variety to clinch a third break and seal the set.

The second frame was more comfortable for Tsitsipas, who gave Zverev no room to breathe and began to use his drop shot to great effect to move his opponent around the court at will. The Greek broke twice to take the set and reach a fourth Masters 1000 final.

Tennis Data Innovation’s Balance of Power shows how Tsitsipas put his foot on the gas to close out the match. The Greek struck 28% of his shots in the second set from attacking positions, compared to 23% for Zverev. (Learn more about Balance of Power.)

Tsitsipas vs. Zverev — Second Set Balance of Power:

Tsitsipas’ path to victory was paved by the constant pressure he was able to exert on the Zverev serve. According to Infosys ATP Stats, the Greek won 47 per cent (15/32) of points against his opponent’s first delivery, one of the most feared weapons on Tour.

The win extends Tsitsipas’ ATP Head2Head series lead over Zverev to 7-3. The Greek has won all three of the pair’s meetings on clay, including a five-set semi-final thriller at Roland Garros in 2021.

Following his deep run in Monte Carlo, Stefanos Tsitsipas will be put back to the test very quickly next week at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, where he reached the championship match in 2021.

The top-seeded Greek could face Monte Carlo semi-finalist Grigor Dimitrov in the third round, with fifth seed Carlos Alcaraz lurking as a potential quarter-final opponent. Alcaraz could face ninth seed Nikoloz Basilashvili in a third-round battle should both men win their openers.

The 18-year-old Spaniard is set to compete on home soil for the first time since he lost to Rafael Nadal in Madrid last May. The World No. 11 holds an 18-3 record on the 2022 ATP Tour season, including title runs in Miami and Rio de Janeiro. He will enter Barcelona third in the ATP Race To Turin, behind only Nadal and Tsitsipas.

Casper Ruud and Felix Auger-Aliassime lead the bottom half of the draw, with the Canadian in line to meet Frances Tiafoe in the third-round rematch of their 2021 US Open encounter. Ruud’s first potential seeded opponent is Alexander Bublik.

Host nation Spain has three seeded entrants, with Roberto Bautista Agut and Pablo Carreno Busta joining Alcaraz. In the top half, seventh seed RBA could face Alex de Minaur in the third round. Eighth seed PCB could open against countryman Tommy Robredo — should the wild card defeat his qualifier opponent in the first round — with Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego his possible third-round opposition. Carreno Busta reached the Barcelona semi-finals one year ago, bowing out against eventual champion Nadal.

Qualifying in Barcelona begins Sunday, with main-draw play set for Monday.

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina continued his dream run at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters Saturday, downing Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-3 to reach his first ATP Tour final.

The Spaniard arrived in Monte Carlo with a 4-9 record on the season, having earned just one Top 100 win in 2022. However, the World No. 46 has produced a string of impressive performances this week, combining quality with grit to earn standout victories over World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Indian Wells champ Taylor Fritz, Marcos Giron, David Goffin and now Dimitrov.

Competing in his maiden ATP Masters 1000 semi-final, a pumped-up Davidovich Fokina recovered from squandering a 5-3 lead in the second set as he rose to the occasion in the decider in front of a lively crowd on Court Rainier III. The 22-year-old blasted his groundstrokes with consistent depth, successfully targeted Dimitrov’s backhand and rallied from a break down in the third set to triumph after two hours and 42 minutes.

“I am so, so happy to be in the final. It is a dream come true,” Davidovich Fokina said in his on-court interview. “When I was a kid I was dreaming about this day. It is a dream and I am so happy. The second set I had my chances, but I didn’t play very well. I was so tight and he just put the ball in. The tie-break was also tight. But I went to the bathroom and said that I want this win.”

Davidovich Fokina, who reached the last eight in Monte Carlo in 2021, will be aiming to win his first tour-level title when he faces second seed Alexander Zverev or reigning champion Stefanos Tsitsipas in Sunday’s final. He was 0-3 in tour-level semi-finals heading into his match with Dimitrov, but changed that record with his proactive display to earn the biggest win of his career.

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The 22-year-old broke Dimitrov five times and looked to open up the court as he hit an array of angles to pull the Bulgarian around. With his hard-fought victory, Davidovich Fokina now leads Dimitrov 2-0 in their ATP Head2Head series, having also defeated the former World No. 3 on clay in Rome last year. By reaching the final, Davidovich Fokina is projected to climb 19 places to No. 27 in the ATP Rankings and will crack the Top 20 for first time if he wins the title.

“He started the second set well and had the chances to break me again for 3-0. But that hold gave me power to keep pushing,” Davidovich Fokina said. “Now I am in the final I will enjoy it and try my best.”

The Spaniard made a fast start as he showcased his current confidence levels with an all-court display in the first set. Davidovich Fokina crushed his groundstrokes with heavy topspin to move 3-1 ahead as he earned an early break. According to Infosys ATP Stats, the World No. 46 did not face a break point in the opener and sealed the set when Dimitrov could only hit a forehand long when pinned deep behind the baseline.

The 30-year-old responded quickly at the start of the second set, though, as Davidovich Fokina’s intensity slightly dropped. However, from 2-0 up, Dimitrov started to hit his backhands short again, which allowed Davidovich Fokina to gain the upper hand in rallies and dictate. The Spaniard won four straight games, but from 5-4 he was unable to serve out the match as nerves appeared to impact his ball striking. Dimitrov then played the more aggressive tennis in the tie-break to force a decider.

Fuelled with confidence, Dimitrov looked as if he was heading for the finish line when he moved 2-0 ahead in the third set. But crucially, Davidovich Fokina saved four break points at 0-2, including one with an underarm serve. His hold changed the momentum of the match once again, with the Spaniard winning six of the next seven games to triumph.

Dimitrov was playing in his second semi-final in Monte Carlo, having enjoyed a run to the last four in 2018. The World No. 29, who upset fourth seed Casper Ruud earlier this week, is an eight-time tour-level titlist. However, the 30-year-old has not lifted a trophy since he clinched the Nitto ATP Finals crown in London in 2017.

Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury reached a maiden Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters final in dramatic style on Saturday as they overcame Rohan Bopanna and Jamie Murray in a semi-final epic at the ATP Masters 1000 event.

Ram and Salisbury needed a strong Match Tie-break performance to see off their unseeded opponents, who had taken the first set with a solitary break. The top seeds failed to convert the only break point opportunity they carved out in the match but held their nerve to clinch a 3-6, 7-6(4), 11-9 victory.

Ram and Salisbury’s comeback win was powered by a strong serving performance. They won 82 per cent (31/38) of points behind their first delivery overall, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

Bopanna and Murray won 74 points in the match to Ram and Salisbury’s 67 but were second best at crucial moments on Court Rainier III. Bopanna has a career-high doubles ranking of No. 3 while Murray is a former World No. 1, but the duo was playing as a team for the first time this week.

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If the American-British duo can lift its maiden clay-court trophy in Monte Carlo it will cap a perfect week for 29-year-old Salisbury, who became the world’s top-ranked doubles player for the first time on Monday, 4 April. He is only the second British player after Murray to achieve that feat.

Ram and Salisbury will now face Colombians Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah in Sunday’s final after the sixth seeds defeated Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer, 7-5, 6-3.

Cabal and Farah won 81 per cent (34/42) of points behind their first delivery and saved all four break points they faced to advance after 85 minutes.

The pair has won 19 tour-level titles together and will be aiming to clinch their third Masters 1000 crown together on Sunday. It will be a tough task, though, with Ram and Salisbury leading the Colombians 4-1 in their ATP Head2Head series.

After all four singles quarter-finals went the distance on a Friday for the ages at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, the marathon victors return for more in Saturday’s semi-finals. The two highest-seeded players remaining are set to square off as defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas takes on Alexander Zverev, but not before unseeded opponents Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Grigor Dimitrov trade blows on Court Rainier III.

Doubles play also moves exclusively to the Monte Carlo Country Club’s show court for the semi-finals, with top seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury seeking to maintain their perfect set record on the week and claim their first ATP Tour title of the 2022 season.

View Schedule | View Singles Draw | View Doubles Draw

[2] Alexander Zverev (GER) vs. [3] Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE)

Both Zverev and Tsitsipas mounted thrilling comebacks to reach the last four. Zverev was down a set and a break against fan favourite Jannik Sinner, then twice led by a break in the final set before taking a nerve-wracking tie-break to advance, 5-7, 6-3, 7-6(5). The German is through to his second semi-final on the season and his second in Monte Carlo.

“It means a lot, definitely, especially [with] how this year has been going so far for me,” said Zverev after his marathon win. “I’ve lost long matches like that, so I’m happy I won this one.”

Zverev is seeking to complete the triple crown of clay-court ATP Masters 1000 titles, having triumphed in Madrid twice and Rome once. He can close to within 235 ATP Ranking points of World No. 1 Novak Djokovic with the Monaco title, and can gain significant ground on injured World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev as well.

Tsitsipas, defending 1,000 points as last year’s champion, was two games from defeat in his quarter-final against Diego Schwartzman. After leading, 6-2, 5-2, he dropped a 3/7 tie-break and fell behind 0-4 in the final set before sweeping the final six games to close out an epic day of tennis in Monte Carlo.

The World No. 5 Greek holds a 6-3 edge over Zverev in their ATP Head2Head series, including a 2-0 mark on clay, but the German has taken two of their past three meetings. Each of their past two matchups went the distance in 2021, with Tsitsipas winning a five-set semi-final at Roland Garros and Zverev taking a third-set tie-break at the same stage of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati.

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (ESP) vs. Grigor Dimitrov (BUL)

After reaching the Monte Carlo quarter-finals for the second straight year, Davidovich Fokina broke new ground with his 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over 10th seed Taylor Fritz. Also a Roland Garros quarter-finalist in 2021, the 22-year-old Spaniard is through to his first ATP Masters 1000 semi-final.

“I am so, so happy,” Davidovich Fokina said after knocking out the American Indian Wells champion. “Last year I reached the quarter-finals. The emotions to be in the semi-finals are so high. I am enjoying every point.”

Davidovich Fokina kickstarted his run by upsetting Novak Djokovic in the second round, the opening match of the tournament for the Serb.

“When you beat the World No. 1 it gives you a lot of confidence physically, mentally and technically,” the Spaniard reflected. “I am pushing myself every match to play harder and harder.”

Dimitrov is competing in his eighth ATP Masters 1000 semi-final and seeking a second title at that level following his 2017 Cincinnati triumph. The Bulgarian opened the 2022 ATP Tour season by reaching the semi-finals at the Melbourne ATP 250 event, and reached the Indian Wells quarter-finals in March.

Following victories against 15th seed Nikoloz Basilashvili (first round), fourth seed Casper Ruud (third round) and 11th seed Hubert Hurkacz (quarter-finals), Dimitrov will face his second unseeded opponent of the week on Saturday. Like Zverev, the Bulgarian won a third-set tie-break to reach the last four, downing Hurkacz, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(2).

“I am just going one day at a time,” the veteran said of his approach at his first clay-court event of the season. “I’ve put in the work — that’s all I’ve done. I’m not even thinking of how I’m playing or anything like that, I just want to [do] a lot of work. The season on clay is not that long so you just want to keep on building, and that’s all I’m doing right now.”

Dimitrov is the oldest of the four quarter-finalists at 30, with Zverev the next-oldest at 24.

Doubles Semi-finals

A pair of British doubles stars will square off in the opening match of the day, as World No. 1 Joe Salisbury and longtime partner Rajeev Ram face former No. 1 Jamie Murray and Rohan Bopanna. The British-Indian duo are competing in their first ATP Tour event as a team, while Salisbury and the USA’s Ram seek their sixth title together.

The top seeds have dropped just 12 games in two matches en route to the semi-finals. By contrast, Murray and Bopanna won a pair of Match Tie-breaks to open their campaign, then edged third seeds Horacio Zeballos and Marcel Granollers, 7-6(8), 7-6(8), in the quarters.

Sixth-seeded Colombians Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah will take on eighth seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer in the day’s second semi-final, which will close out the evening’s play in Monaco.

SATURDAY, APRIL 16 – SCHEDULE

COURT RAINIER III start 11:30 a.m.
[1] R. Ram (USA / J. Salisbury (GBR) vs. R. Bopanna (IND) / J. Murray (GBR)

Not before 1:30 p.m.
A. Davidovich Fokina (ESP) vs. G. Dimitrov (BUL)

Not before 3:30 p.m.
[2] A. Zverev (GER) vs. [3] S. Tsitsipas (GRE)
[6] J. Cabal (COL) / R. Farah (COL) vs. [8] M. Arevalo (ESA) / J. Rojer (NED)

On a day of thrillers at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, the best was saved until last when Stefanos Tsitsipas edged Diego Schwartzman 6-2, 6-7(3), 6-4 in an epic clash under the floodlights on Court Rainier III.

In a classic quarter-final match that swung one way and then another, Tsitsipas squandered a 5-2 lead in the second set, before rallying from 0-4 in the decider to triumph after two hours and 45 minutes on Friday.

“There was a moment in the match where I felt what I was doing wasn’t working,” Tsitsipas said in his on-court interview. “He had a massive lead and momentum in what he was trying to do. I just tried to stay in the match as much as I could and that worked out very well. I wasn’t expecting much at that point being a double break down, so I relaxed at that point.”

Both hit aggressively throughout as they entertained the raucous crowd on Court Rainier III with their shotmaking and agility. Tsitsipas looked down and out at 0-4 in the third set after losing nine out of 10 games from 5-2 up in the second set. However, the World No. 5 then started to find his rhythm once again, hitting with greater width and topspin once again to triumph.

“It was extremely close,” Tsitsipas said. “I was really close in the second set. That was the moment I had a big chance to close it out but Diego is Diego and I had to be Stefanos in the third set.”

According to Tennis Data Innovation’s Balance of Power, the Greek hit 22% of his shots in the match from offensive positions, compared to 14% for Schwartzman. Tsitsipas’ ability to get on the front foot paid dividends throughout the match, but never more so than in his late charge. (Learn more about Balance of Power.)

Tsitsipas is now two wins away from retaining his title in Monte Carlo, after he clinched his maiden ATP Masters 1000 crown at the event last year. The World No. 5 ruthlessly dispatched 2019 champion Fabio Fognini and Serbian Laslo Djere in his opening two matches and will compete in his ninth semi-final at this level on Saturday.

With his victory, the 23-year-old has levelled his ATP Head2Head series with Schwartzman at 2-2 and will next play Alexander Zverev after the German edged Jannik Sinner 5-7, 6-3, 7-6(5).

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Tsitsipas is aiming to win his first title since he captured the crown in Lyon last May. His best result this season came in Rotterdam, where he enjoyed a run to the final before losing to Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime.

The third seed made a fast start, racing into a 5-0 lead as he had success on return, taking heavy cuts at the ball to pin Schwartzman deep behind the baseline. Tsitsipas dictated the backhand exchanges as he caused the Argentine problems with his heavy topspin.

After moving ahead, Tsitsipas continued to play with high intensity as he gained the crucial break in the fourth game to gain further control. However, from 2-5 Schwartzman battled back to 5-5 as Tsitsipas’ level dipped under pressure. The World No. 16 sensed his chance and played a faultless tie-break to level the match.

Schwartzman then soared into a 4-0 lead in the deciding set, but Tsitsipas would not be denied, storming back as he regained his focus and top level to triumph in one of the matches of the season.

Earlier on Friday Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina eliminated Taylor Fritz in the three sets, while Grigor Dimitrov overcame Hubert Hurkacz in another match that went the distance.

Schwartzman was aiming to reach his first Masters 1000 semi-final, having reached the last four on the clay in Rome in 2019 and 2020.