Carlos Alcaraz reaches Roland Garros final by prevailing over Jannik Sinner in five sets

PARIS—A year ago at Roland Garros, Carlos Alcaraz didn’t have the ending he hoped for on Court Philippe Chatrier when his body broke down against Novak Djokovic early in the third set of their semifinal.

Stepping back out on the renowned clay court for another final-four bout, Alcaraz fought back to edge Jannik Sinner, 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, in the latest chapter of the pair’s rivalry. The Spaniard improved to a sparkling 10-1 in five-setters after surviving in four hours and nine minutes.

"I told myself that it's gonna be a long match. It is a Grand Slam, that he had to win two more sets. So it was going to be a long match, so I have to stay positive, to stay there," Alcaraz said in his press conference.

"I change a little bit my shots. A few shots I'm gonna say 50% with a lot of high, and then try to take more in the court, to stay more aggressive than him because at the beginning, he was controlling the match very, very well."

Alcaraz also moved ahead 5-4 against Sinner, having now taken two of their three meetings on the Grand Slam stage. He stopped Sinner’s unbeaten major run at 12 matches following the Italian’s Australian Open triumph and in turn, became the youngest man in the Open Era to reach major finals on three different surfaces.

How it went down:

Set 1

Sinner broke in a five-minute opening game after Alcaraz netted the Italian’s defensive slice on an attempted crosscourt forehand. A backhand winner up the line put Sinner up 30-40 on his next return game and the No. 3 seed’s sixth unforced error of the set put him behind a double break. Alcaraz notably won just 4 of 14 first-serve points to start, while Sinner began with consecutive love holds to back up both breaks. Alcaraz would get one back, but dropped serve from 40-15 – and Sinner closed out the fairly one-sided set. The 21-year-old vented his frustration at 2-5 to chair umpire Eva Asderaki when the ice towels he requested in a previous changeover were not made available.

Set 2

The court received a water treatment before set two commenced. Five unforced errors in an eight-point game saw Alcaraz repeat history in going down a break to start. Once Sinner consolidated, the shot that had been problematic for Alcaraz clicked in. Feeling more confident on his forehand side, Alcaraz found the right balance to go heavy with looping shots and pull the trigger with blazing speeds in clawing back with five straight games. He’d have no trouble closing it out to send the match into a best-of-three shootout.

Set 3

Alcaraz struck first with a crosscourt backhand pass on the run to move ahead 2-1, but Sinner came right back with a deep return that set up a forehand finish for the re-break. Falling behind 15-40, a right-hand cramp appeared to hinder Sinner. Fighting through it over a 12-minute game, he erased four break points before getting visited by the trainer to have his right arm looked at. From deep in the ad court, Sinner found a beautiful backhand angle to outfox his serve-and-volleying opponent for a 4-2 lead. Sinner had both legs massaged at the 5-2 changeover before shutting the door at the line.

Set 4

Five holds in, chants of “Carlos!” erupted when the Spaniard tracked down a drop shot with a special response to create 30-30. Sinner wasn’t fazed in keeping pace for 3-3. Alcaraz wowed with a forehand pass winner on the run during his next hold that culminated with a lively “Vamos!” from his end. Play was briefly delayed for medical personnel to attend to an elderly patron who fell ill with Alcaraz serving at 4-4, 40-15. Serving to stay in the set, Sinner botched a mid-court overhead at 30-15. Alcaraz pounced, lacing a backhand up the line that drew an error to reach set point and following it up by opening the court to finish with a backhand crosscourt for the final touch.

Set 5

Carrying his energy through to an opening hold, Alcaraz held an immediate break point on Sinner. His rival saved it with a sublime drop shot, but the highlight reel shifted to the other side when the two-time major winner flicked a no-look backhand crosscourt passing shot for ad-out—and broke with a boisterous forehand winner. Sinner went around the post with a backhand on his way to a 0-30 opening at 1-3, a game that eventually went to a pair of deuces. Sinner made one last stand, pushing Alcaraz to deuce with a courageous forehand up the line. Alcaraz missed his second match point but made it third time's the charm to seal the hard-fought victory. He now accounts for two of Sinner's three 2024 defeats.