'Mature' Davidovich Fokina marks return to Monte-Carlo SFs

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina continued his impressive start to the 2025 season on Friday at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, where he sealed his return to the semi-finals.

The 25-year-old, who reached the 2022 final in the Principality, delivered an assured performance to ease past Australia’s Alexei Popyrin 6-3, 6-2 at the ATP Masters 1000 event. By notching his 18th tour-level win of 2025, Davidovich Fokina has matched the total number of victories he recorded last season, during which he ended with an 18-22 record, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index.

"I've improved as a person, my maturity," said Davidovich Fokina, who is 18-8 in 2025. "When you can control [things] off the court, it's going to be easier to control your emotions [on the court]. Today it has proved [the progress] I am making this year."

ALL GAS, NO BRAKES 😤

In a dominant display, @alexdavidovich1 storms into his third Masters 1000 semi-final! @ROLEXMCMASTERS | #RolexMonteCarloMasters pic.twitter.com/z94eCBxPGw

— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 11, 2025

Already a two-time finalist in 2025 (Delray Beach, Acapulco), Davidovich Fokina will continue his quest for a maiden ATP Tour trophy when he faces Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-finals. Davidovich Fokina fell to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the 2022 final in Monte-Carlo, and they could set a repeat of that contest if they both advance to the championship match.

With his run to the last four in Monte-Carlo, Davidovich Fokina is up 12 spots to No. 30 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings. While Popyrin was aiming to reach his second Masters 1000 semi-final, last year’s Montreal champion was unable to fend off the relentless Spaniard.

In his maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash with Popyrin, Davidovich Fokina commanded from the baseline, dictating points with ease and crucially limiting his unforced error count to 13, compared with the Australian’s 33. The Spaniard also dropped just four of his 15 second-serve points and did not face a single break point during the 69-minute match.