Valentin Vacherot’s pursuit of winning his home tournament, the Monte-Carlo Masters, came to an end in the semifinals.
Vacherot lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the final four of the first clay-court ATP Masters 1000 tournament of the season, falling in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4.
The Monegasque star achieved his best finish at a Masters event since his historic triumph in Shanghai.
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Following his defeat to Alcaraz, tennis legend Boris Becker took to social media to congratulate Vacherot on an impressive accomplishment.
Boris Becker congratulates Valentin Vacherot after defeat
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Becker said: “Incredible achievement for @val_vacherot at his home tournament!”
Vacherot kicked off his Monte-Carlo Masters campaign with a comeback victory over Juan Manuel Cerundolo.
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Then, the 27-year-old earned a statement victory over fourth seed Lorenzo Musetti, who made the final of the tournament last year.
Vacherot came back from a set down again in his round-of-16 meeting with Hubert Hurkacz, and then beat fifth seed Alex de Minaur in the quarterfinals to set up the match with Alcaraz.
In his first career bout with the Spaniard, Vacherot gave Alcaraz a run for his money, but could not find an answer.
Valentin Vacherot’s 2026 season so far on the ATP Tour
After bursting onto the scene late in 2025, Vacherot has recorded a fairly indifferent 2026 campaign on the tour.
Vacherot won just four matches throughout the entirety of the Australian swing, having crashed out in the first round at the Brisbane International before earning two wins in both Adelaide and the Australian Open.
Following two Davis Cup wins, he then lost in round one at the Delray Beach Open, but managed to reach the quarterfinals in Acapulco.
He won just one match at the Indian Wells Open, but in the second half of the Sunshine Double, the Miami Open, Vacherot reached the fourth round.
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