Alcaraz concedes that Sinner ‘played much better’ in Monte Carlo final defeat
Video credit: SNTV
Carlos Alcaraz has revealed his clay swing plans ahead of the French Open in Paris next month.
The second Grand Slam of the season will be live on TNT Sports and HBO Max.This comes after Alcaraz fell to a 7-6(5) 6-3 defeat to Jannik Sinner in the Monte-Carlo Masters final on Sunday evening.The weekend showpiece marked the first time the tennis heavyweights had faced off in 2026 as both chased their 27th ATP tour title, with Sinner coming out on top to win the tournament for the first time in his career.Not only did Alcaraz fail to defend his Monte-Carlo Masters crown, but the Spaniard let slip the world No. 1 spot to Sinner in the process.Attention now turns to the French Open build-up as Alcaraz looks to complete a competition three-peat.
However, while the 23-year-old’s primary objective is “to play the full clay season calendar”, Alcaraz couldn’t confirm whether he’ll play Barcelona, Madrid and Rome ahead of the second Grand Slam event of the year.
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‘The main goal’
“Well, I don’t know, the main goal is to play the full clay season calendar,” Alcaraz said. “Let’s see how it’s gonna be. It was the goal last year as well, and unfortunately I couldn’t because I was injured.”
Alcaraz missed the Monte-Carlo Masters in 2023, while in 2024 he only played in Madrid before winning the French Open.And in 2025, he sat out Madrid again and then lost to Holger Rune in the final in Barcelona, only to land success at Roland-Garros.
“We are touching wood and praying that nothing’s going to happen to my body,” Alcaraz continued.
“I listen to my body much better than last year, for sure. If I’m gonna skip one, I will skip one tournament. If my body stays healthy, I’m going to do whatever it takes.”
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Video credit: TNT Sports
“If I don’t have any problems, I will play everything on clay. Let’s see how it’s gonna be in the next weeks.
“I don’t know if I’m gonna win matches, if I’m gonna lose in the first rounds, if the matches are going to be super demanding physically or not… but what I can tell right now is I will listen to my body much better this year than last year, for sure.”
Alcaraz is scheduled to play Finnish star Otto Virtanen on Tuesday in Barcelona, and the winner of their tie will face either Tomas Machac or Sebastian Baez in the next round later this week.
TNT Sports is the exclusive French Open broadcaster in the UK and Ireland. Coverage of every court will be available to watch live on HBO Max.