The final would last just 23 minutes as the top-ranked and top-seeded Sinner unable to play on due to illness. Only five games into the match, the Italian informed chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani that he could not continue. The finally tally, 5-0, ret., gives Alcaraz the eighth ATP Masters 1000 title of his career.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
As the defending champion, Sinner was bidding to become the first player to go back-to-back here since Roger Federer in 2014-15. It marks only the second time in the Open Era that a player has retired in the Cincinnati men\u2019s final. Novak Djokovic was forced to retire in 2013 due to a shoulder injury trailing, 6-4, 3-0.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The title is Alcaraz\u2019s first in Cincinnati. In 2023, he squandered a championship point against Djokovic, dropping a three-hour, 49-minute, 5-7, 7-6(7), 7-6(4) epic that still stands as the longest best-of-three-sets final in ATP Tour history. He is the third Spaniard to claim the men\u2019s title after Carlos Moya (2002) and Rafael Nadal (2013).<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cAfter the third game, I just noticed that he wasn\u2019t feeling good at all,\u201d said Alcaraz. \u201cI know him. I\u2019ve been battling against him for two years, having great matches, great battles. I know his style, his game. I noticed that he was being more aggressive than he used to be. He was missing more often. I thought that it was pretty weird from him. I noticed that the body language wasn\u2019t the best for him.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"It\u2019s not the way that I want to win matches, win trophies. I can\u2019t say anything you don\u2019t know already, but as I\u2019ve said many, many times, you are truly a champion. I\u2019m pretty sure from this situation that you are going to come back better, even stronger. You always do. That\u2019s what true champions do,\" The Spaniard added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
By winning his third ATP Masters 1000 title of the season, following triumphs in Monte-Carlo and Rome, Alcaraz extended his winning streak at that level to 17 matches. With his 22nd tour-level trophy, Alcaraz also strengthened his push for Year-End No. 1 he last held in 2022. He leads Sinner by 1,890 points in the ATP Live Race To Turin, according to ATP stats.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
With defeat, Sinner's 26-match winning streak on hard courts comes to an end, and he now faces a quick recovery ahead of his US Open title defence. The World No. 1's participation in the mixed doubles event, in which he is set to compete with Katerina Siniakova on Tuesday, may now be in question.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
With a Tour-leading 54 wins and six titles in 2025, Alcaraz will head to the US Open, which could have huge ramifications in his battle with Sinner for the World No. 1 spot.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
With defeat, Sinner's 26-match winning streak on hard courts comes to an end, and he now faces a quick recovery ahead of his US Open title defence. The World No. 1's participation in the mixed doubles event, in which he is set to compete with Katerina Siniakova on Tuesday, may now be in question.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Interestingly, in the last two years, the Cincinnati champion has gone on to win the US Open.<\/p>\r\n\r\n