Djokovic, Alcaraz on collision course in Monte-Carlo

Could Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz renew their rivalry at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters?

The pair could face off in the semi-finals at the ATP Masters 1000 event after being drawn in the same half on Friday. Djokovic leads Alcaraz 3-2 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series, having won their previous meeting at the Nitto ATP Finals in November.

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The top-seeded Serbian, who is a two-time champion in Monte-Carlo, will begin against Roman Safiullin or a qualifier. He could face Lorenzo Musetti in the third round. The Italian defeated Djokovic in the third round last season in The Principality. Musetti starts against 13th seed Taylor Fritz, with the winner playing #NextGenATP Frenchman Arthur Fils or Adrian Mannarino.

Defending champion Andrey Rublev, who opens against Alexei Popyrin or a qualifier, is seeded to meet Djokovic in the quarter-finals. The sixth seed Rublev could face 11th seed Alex de Minaur in the third round. The Australian opens against 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka.

Third seed Alcaraz is making his second appearance in Monte-Carlo, having lost in the second round in 2022. The Spaniard, who has won seven tour-level titles on clay, starts against Felix Auger-Aliassime or a qualifier. He is seeded to meet Dubai champion Ugo Humbert in the third round and Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals.

In the bottom half of the draw, Jannik Sinner will aim to maintain his impressive form and capture his fourth title of the season. The 22-year-old Italian, who is 22-1 on the season, starts against 2022 finalist Alejandro Davidovich Fokina or Sebastian Korda. Sinner could face 16th seed Alexander Bublik in the third round and last year’s finalist Holger Rune in the quarter-finals. Rune begins against Matteo Arnaldi or Emil Ruusuvuori.

Fourth seed Daniil Medvedev and fifth seed Alexander Zverev are potential semi-final opponents for Sinner. Medvedev faces Jordan Thompson or French wild card Gael Monfils in the second round, while Zverev plays Daniel Evans or Sebastian Ofner.

Two-time Monte-Carlo champion Stefanos Tsitsipas is seeded 12th and meets Laslo Djere in his first match. Other first-round matches to watch include Hubert Hurkacz vs. Jack Draper and Grigor Dimitrov vs. Monegasque wild card Valentin Vacherot.