Tennis

Alcaraz was already assured of a semi-final place, after Alex de Minaur beat Taylor Fritz earlier on Thursday – but he would not be denied in his bid to edge rival Jannik Sinner in the race to be crowned the top-ranked men’s player of 2025.

The 22-year-old Spaniard let out a huge roar as he achieved the feat by beating Italian ninth seed Lorenzo Musetti 6-4 6-1 – also ensuring he recorded 70 wins in a season for the first time in his career.

In topping the Jimmy Connors Group, Alcaraz has avoided a semi-final meeting with Sinner – who is already confirmed as winner of the Bjorn Borg Group before the final round of matches on Friday.

Sinner will play De Minaur in the last four, while Alcaraz awaits the winner of German Alexander Zverev and Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime, as the world’s top two aim to set up a tantalising final blockbuster showdown to conclude a year in which they have once again dominated the tour.

“It means the world to me, to be honest. The year-end number one is always a goal,” Alcaraz said.

“At the beginning of the year I saw number one really far away, with Jannik winning almost every tournament he plays.

“Then in the last three, four tournaments of the year, [I was] fighting toe-to-toe with Jannik for this spot, and then finally I got it. For me, it means everything.”