Jannik Sinner booked his place in the Monte-Carlo semifinals and is one step closer to reclaiming world number one status after beating Felix Auger-Aliassime.
After his streak of consecutive sets won at Masters tournaments came to an end against Tomas Machac, Sinner returned to his dominant level and delivered another straight sets win, 6-3, 6-4.
The Italian is bidding to claim a third straight ATP Masters 1000 title, having completed the Sunshine Double of Indian Wells and Miami in March.
Will Jannik Sinner win the French Open?
Sinner cited fatigue due to the amount of matches he has played recently when explaining the dip in level against Machac.
After beating Auger-Aliassime, however, the world number two revealed he felt much better physically.
Jannik Sinner provides fitness update after winning again
Speaking in his on-court interview, Sinner said: “Yeah, you know, I feel like a step forward today. It was a very, very tough match.
“I knew that I had to get better in certain areas. The serve is not there yet, where I would love it to be, but all things considered, I’m very happy.
“Yesterday, I was very tired. I recovered very good in this night’s sleep. And yeah, of course, let’s see what’s coming tomorrow.
Is the Monte Carlo Masters the best ATP 1000 tournament?
If not, which tournament do you consider to be better?
“But in any case, very happy to be back in the semis,” concluded Sinner, who also reached the Monte-Carlo semifinals in 2023 and 2024.
Sinner missed out entirely on the Monte-Carlo Masters last season due to his three-month suspension from tennis.
Jannik Sinner reacts to his incredible overhead in Monte-Carlo
At 3-3 in the second set, Auger-Aliassime attempted to lob Sinner, but the 24-year-old got back and hit it straight out of the air, delivering an incredible overhead from almost the baseline to break serve.
Asked if the shot was a sign of extreme confidence, Sinner responded: ““No, I feel like, you know, in these shots, when you start with the intention to hit, you know, I don’t doubt, you know, I’d rather miss and then go for it than, you know, hoping at times.
“So it is a shot where we try to improve. You know, it is a shot where we are working on a lot. Even though, from outside it seems always an easy shot to smash, but it’s definitely not.
“But today the weather, you know, with the clouds, I feel like a bit more confident, you know, to hit the serve when it’s blue sky, for example, I’m someone who struggles a bit more.
“But yeah, I’m happy that I made it, you know. And now knowing that it went out, you know, it was a key moment for sure.”
Sinner will take on Alexander Zverev in the semifinals of the Monte-Carlo Masters, against whom he is on a seven-match winning streak.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
