Jannik Sinner's comeback after a three-month doping ban ends in defeat in the final of the Masters 1000 tournament in Rome. The Italian was defeated 6:7 (5:7), 1:6 by the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz.
18.05.2025, 19:38
18.05.2025, 20:19
SDA
Sinner and Alcaraz delivered a thrilling duel in phases on the clay court in the Foro Italico. The first set in particular, which lasted 71 minutes, whetted the appetite for the French Open, which begins in a week's time and where the two, as numbers 1 and 2 on the seeding list, are the first contenders to win the tournament.
In his second final this year (after winning the tournament in Monte Carlo), Alcaraz was courageous, precise and powerful - and he also had luck on his side in the decisive moments in the tie-break. The Spaniard then played brilliantly and virtually flawlessly in the second set.
Sinner, the winner of the 2025 Australian Open, was previously unbeaten this year - but this was also due to the fact that he was not allowed to play for months. The world number one made his comeback in Rome after a three-month break, which he had taken following an agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) regarding a correspondingly long ban. Traces of the doping agent Clostebol were discovered in the South Tyrolean in March 2024.
