ATP Race after Rome Open: Carlos Alcaraz extends lead as Jannik Sinner returns to top 2

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner were the main story of the week after contesting the Rome Open final, where the Spaniard claimed another Masters 1000 title and increased his head-to-head advantage over his great rival. Nevertheless, Sinner takes the second place of the ATP Race to Turin with only two tournaments played.

The ATP Race only counts points earned during the 2025 calendar year, starting from the first week of January. It is the Race that determines the eight players who will qualify for the ATP Finals at the end of the season.

Carlos Alcaraz continues his great clay swing and will arrive full of confidence to defend his title at the French Open. The Spaniard won his 7th Masters 1000 title in a new chapter of his rivalry with Sinner, this time in front of the Italian crowd. He added another 1,000 points after defeating him 7-6(5), 6-1 and extends his lead at No. 1 in the Race.

All eyes were on Sinner during the last two weeks, as the main local representative and in his debut tournament after a three-month suspension. The three-time Grand Slam champion acknowledged that he didn't arrive with high expectations for the tournament, but he had a remarkable week to reach another final, despite lacking high-level match rhythm. Added to his Australian Open title at the beginning of the year, it was enough to return to the podium, leaving Alexander Zverev and Jack Draper further behind.

Behind Alcaraz and Sinner, Jack Draper completes the podium, the Indian Wells champion from a couple of months ago who again had a deep run in a Masters 1000. The Brit had been a finalist in Madrid and this time reached the quarterfinals of the Rome Open, falling to the eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz. Draper looks like one of the best on clay courts this season and will be one of the big threats to Sinner and Alcaraz at Roland Garros.

The German hasn't had too many joys since reaching the Australian Open final at the start of the year. Several inconsistent results prevented him from challenging for the world No. 1 ranking when Sinner was suspended, but a month ago he won an ATP 500 title in Munich, which gave him a new boost. These weeks he was the defending champion in Rome but reached the quarterfinals. In any case, he can be satisfied with an improvement in his level for a deep run and arrive at the French Open with a bit more confidence. He remains in fourth place, despite more than 80% of his points being earned in two tournaments out of the ten he has played.

Casper Ruud corrected an inconsistent season by winning his first title at the Madrid Open two weeks ago, and he took advantage of the momentum at the Rome Open – managing a 9-match winning streak on clay – but ended up being swept aside by Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals 0-6, 1-6. The Norwegian added valuable points in the Race and is in 5th place.

He is followed by Lorenzo Musetti, another player who has been inspired on clay courts. He has a 13-3 record on the surface this season, with losses only against Alcaraz (2) and Draper. Another semifinal appearance gave him another boost in the Race, and he has reasons to dream big at Roland Garros in a week.

Alex de Minaur (7th) and Francisco Cerundolo (8th) complete the qualifying zone, both thanks to their consistency throughout the season. The Australian only reached the round of 16 in Rome, but it didn't affect his Race standing too much, only dropping one place due to Musetti's resurgence. On the Argentinian's side, he climbed another spot – displacing Djokovic – and fell in the Round of 16 after facing world No. 1 Sinner, although the South American had a great performance and put pressure on the local player.