With his victory yesterday, third in a row at the ATP Finals, Carlos Alcaraz He managed to further confirm his place in the semifinals and, what was more important when starting the match against Musetti, ensure that he would finish the season as number one in the world above his tireless pursuer, the also Italian Sinner. The Murcian will be number one in the world at the end of the year and will do so for the second time in his meteoric career. At only 22 years old, the tennis player is closing a 2025 year of almost absolute dominance, which could end as champion in Turin and Davis Cup champion alongside the Spanish team. In fact, in 2022, Alcaraz became the youngest player in ATP history to finish a season ranked number 1 at age 19.
Alcaraz needed just one more victory to surpass his main rival, the Italian Jannik Sinnerin the fight for the number 1 position. He achieved this goal by achieving a resounding victory over Lorenzo Musetti after a 6-4 y 6-1 in less than 90 minutes. Despite admitting to feeling nervous at the start of the match, Alcaraz He swept Musetti and sealed his third victory in the Jimmy Connors group, thus guaranteeing himself the annual lead. And what other players achieved the same, finishing the season at the top of the rankings?
By finishing the season on top for the second time (2022 and 2025), Carlos Alcaraz joins a select group of legends of the tennis. He is the eleventh ATP player to finish the year as number one more than once. In this case, Alcaraz equals with two seasons ending as number one Bjorn Borg (1979-80), Stefan Edberg (1990-91) the Leyton Hewitt (2001-02). Although no one doubts his power and his progression, Alcaraz still has ahead of him the historical record of most seasons ended as number one in the world that he holds, in order Novak Djokovic (eight times, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2023), Pete Sampras (on six consecutive occasions, from 1993 to 1998), Jimmy Connors (1974-1978), Roger Federer (2004-2007 y 2009), Rafa Nadal (2008, 2010, 2013, 2017 and 2019), John McEnroe (1981-1984) and Ivan Lendl (1985-1987 y 1989).
All illustrious names in the history of tennis, a history that the tennis player from Murcia is willing to leave his mark on. In fact, Alcaraz is already the second active player, besides Djokovic, who manages to end a year leading the world rankings on more than one occasion. His name is already above, for example, Andre AgassiAndy MurrayAndy RoddickGustavo KuertenIlie birthJim CourierMats Wilander or his own Sinner. All of them could “only” end up as kings of the racket sport for one season. And all of them, now retired except Sinner, will be forever below the milestone achieved by Alcaraz.
The fight in 2026
Aside from what was achieved by Alcaraz and those 18 tennis playerswhat seems clear is that precisely the fight with Jannik Sinner, who was the best in 2024 and challenged him for number one this season until the ATP Finals, will continue to be the main incentive for 2026. For now, Alcaraz (with an overall balance of 10-5 against Sinner) is already in the semi-finals in Turin, in which he will not face the Italian, whom he could only see on the other side of the net in the final. With 45 weeks already accumulated in the number 1 position, Alcaraz, at 22 years old, is demonstrating that his dominance is not a coincidence, but the result of work and determination. And with a future that it seems he is willing to define with letters of gold.
“It means the world to me, to be honest. Number 1 of the year is always a goal,” Alcaraz commented after beating Musetti. The El Palmar player explained that, at the beginning of 2025, the position seemed “very, very far away” due to Sinner’s great performance, but that he set the goal “from the middle of the season until now.” Alcaraz’s 2025 season already accumulates, apart from the title of best player of the year, eight titleshis highest figure obtained in a single season. Since April, his record is impressive: 55 matches won out of 59, reaching the final in 9 of his 10 completed tournaments. His wounds, dos Grand Slams (Roland Garros y US Open), tres ATP Masters 1000 (Monte Carlo, Rome and Cincinnati) and tres ATP 500 (Rotterdam, Queen’s and Tokyo).
With the two victories in the two Grand Slams mentioned in 2025, Alcaraz has already accumulated six major titles. He is, in fact, the second youngest player in the world with such a number of Grand Slam trophies, only surpassed by Bjorn Borgwho was also 22 years old when he achieved that mark. In addition, he is the fourth youngest tennis player to win more than one Grand Slam title on clay, grass and hard court, joining legends such as Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Mats Wilander. And, as we mentioned, you can still win the current ATP Finals and the Davis Cup, along with Spain, within a few days of each other. But, according to what was seen on the Turin court, the Murcian tennis player does not lack either the hunger for titles or the quality to achieve them.
