Alcaraz secures year-end world No. 1: Carlitos reaches his first goal in Turin by defeating Musetti
Carlos Alcaraz will finish the year as world No. 1, regardless of Jannik Sinner’s results at the ATP Finals. His 6-4, 6-1 victory over Lorenzo Musetti confirmed that the Spaniard is a man on a mission.
Carlos Alcaraz, ATP Finals 2025 | © Zuma / PsNewz
Carlos Alcaraz at the 2025 ATP Finals: this time, it’s serious – very serious.
After previous disappointments at the Turin Masters, the Roland-Garros and US Open champion has finally broken through, advancing from the group stage with a perfect record. The immediate consequence: at just 22 years old, Alcaraz is guaranteed to finish the season as world No. 1 for the second time in his career having done so previously in 2022.
Even if Jannik Sinner were to win the title without dropping a set, as he did in 2024, he can no longer overtake his great rival.
Alcaraz needed three wins – any three – to secure the year-end top spot. By defeating Alex de Minaur, Taylor Fritz, and local favorite Lorenzo Musetti on Thursday (6-4, 6-1), “Carlitos” has checked off one of his key goals for the season and for his Italian campaign.
Alcaraz : “It means everything”
“It means the world to me to be honest, he said on court. The year end number one is always a goal. To be honest, at the beginning of the year I saw spot really far away. Jannik being there winning almost every tournament he played.”
“From the middle of the season til now, I put a goal for number 1 because I thought it was there. I had a chance to play great tennis in a lot of tournaments in a row to put myself closer to Jannik. In the last three or four tournaments of the year, we were fighting toe to toe with Jannik for this spot and finally I got it.”
“For me, it means everything. The work that we put in every day during the whole season. Ups and downs, comebacks.. I’m really proud about my team and myself.”
Alcaraz didn’t allow much suspense
He will top the Jimmy Connors group and now awaits the outcome between Alexander Zverev and Félix Auger-Aliassime, who face off on Friday in what will effectively be a virtual quarterfinal. This result also means Alex de Minaur qualifies for the semifinals, where he will take on Jannik Sinner.
The suspense in Turin lasted about six games of the match – almost seven – as Musetti held Alcaraz to 3-3, 30-all on the Spaniard’s serve in the first set. From that point on, under the guidance of Juan Carlos Ferrero, Alcaraz elevated his game to a level Musetti simply couldn’t match.
The expected Sinner – Alcaraz final
The Spaniard dictated every aspect of the match — both the winners and the unforced errors — backed by a rock-solid serve (69% of first serve in, 83% points won). He took the first set 6-4, broke immediately in the second, and despite facing two break points at 3-1, closed out the match in an hour and 24 minutes.
With all due respect to Zverev and Auger-Aliassime, whose clash on Friday promises to be intriguing, this outstanding 2025 edition of the ATP Finals now seems destined for the showdown everyone is waiting for: Alcaraz vs. Sinner.
