As the 2026 clay season gathers pace in Monte Carlo, renowned coach and analyst Brad Gilbert has weighed in on the sport’s most anticipated rivalry, backing Jannik Sinner to edge Carlos Alcaraz and capture the title. Speaking about the possibility of their first meeting of the season, Gilbert pointed to Sinner’s red-hot form and even floated the idea of a historic Miami-Monte Carlo double, something achieved only once before in men’s tennis.
Why Jannik Sinner’s Red-Hot Form Makes Him a Monte Carlo Frontrunner
The conversation arrives at a compelling moment in the ATP calendar. Sinner has surged into the clay swing on the back of a dominant Sunshine Double, having swept titles at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and the Miami Open. The Italian tennis star carried that form into Monaco, where he moved past Ugo Humbert, 6-3, 6-0, to reach the third round and set up a meeting with Tomáš Macháč.
Meanwhile, Alcaraz has had a less stable run, falling in the Indian Wells semifinal and exiting earlier than expected in Miami. Despite that, the Spaniard remains a formidable force on clay and entered the Monte-Carlo Masters as the defending champion.
He began his Monte-Carlo campaign strongly with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Sebastian Baez. He now faces Tomás Martín Etcheverry in the third round. Despite their growing rivalry, the Spaniard and the Italian have yet to meet this year, even after sharing the titles across the first four tournaments of the season.
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Gilbert, speaking on the “Big T” podcast on Tennis Channel, did not shy away from the intrigue surrounding their delayed showdown. “We’ve had four tournaments this year where Sinner and Alcaraz have played,” he said. “All four tournaments have been won by them, but probably the biggest upset of the tour, if you’d have told me, I would have thought they would have played two or three times already. They’ve played nil.”
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He added that the timing now feels right. “So, I feel like we’re overdue, but I think Sinner is getting there on the bottom. And we’ve had two early losses in a row from Alcaraz. So if I got good odds, I maybe would push the chips forward that maybe we get something different on the top half.”
Gilbert then highlighted the historical stakes, emphasizing the difficulty of backing up Miami with Monte Carlo. “The hardest double in tennis, it’s only happened once. They talk about the Sunshine Double, but only once in the history of tennis has a player won Miami and Monte Carlo back-to-back. That was Novak Djokovic. I’m seeing Sinner doing it, becoming the second.”
Sinner and Alcaraz have faced each other 16 times on the ATP Tour, with Alcaraz leading the head-to-head 10-6. However, they have yet to meet this season.
