"I can say that this time I'm living the best moment of my career," said the 23-year-old Greek after his 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) victory.

Last year, it was indeed in the sad behind closed doors imposed by the covid pandemic and in a chilly and humid atmosphere that Tsitsipas won the best title of his career.

This year, on this Easter Sunday, the setting of the Monte-Carlo Coutry Club was bathed in warm sunshine and the stands were full to capacity (10,300 spectators) to see the Greek raise the cup and cheer him on.

"This place is really special for me. It's the first tournament I attended, when I was six years old. And I never imagined winning it. It's crazy", commented the N.5 global.

It is also a tournament that his mother Julia Salnikova won as a junior in 1981.

six club

Not only did Tsitsipas win the second Masters 1000 of his career on Sunday, but he became only the sixth player to retain his title in the first major clay-court tournament of the season, alongside Ilie Nastase (1971-1973), Björn Borg (1979-1980), Thomas Muster (1995-1996), Juan Carlos Ferrero (2002-2003) and Rafael Nadal (2005-2012 and 2016-2018).

The Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas during his victorious final against the Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich, in Monte-Carlo on April 17, 2022 Valery HACHE AFP

For his part, Davidovich was playing his very first final on the ATP circuit at the age of 22 and lived a dream.

But after a grueling tournament, he seemed to lack the energy for this final march.

"It's a dream come true. Since I was a child I fought for these moments. I hope there will be many more", he nevertheless launched after acknowledging that his opponent of the day had quite simply "played better" than him.

"As a child, I watched all the finals (in Monte-Carlo) and I dreamed of one day playing this final myself. I did it and I hope to do it again," he said.

The Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich in the final of the Monte-Carlo tournament against the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, April 17, 2022 Valery HACHE AFP

Ranked 46th in the ATP at the start of this tournament, Davidovich will reach 27th place on Monday, his new best ranking.

He lit up the tournament with his fighting spirit, his energy and his dives which required many dressings.

And he managed in Monte-Carlo not only the best tournament of his career, but he also obtained his greatest victory there by dismissing the world No.1 Novak Djokovic in the second round.

Down

He probably paid for this burst of energy in the final where he never really worried Tsitsipas.

After a few games in which he took a long time to get going, the Greek found the right fuel: from 3-3 in the first set, he lined up five consecutive games to complete the first set and break away 2 -0 in the second.

Taking advantage of countless unforced errors from Davidovich, Tsitsipas seemed on track to lift the trophy quickly and without shaking.

However, when he only seemed to have to play his opponent until he made the mistake, the Greek, in turn, experienced a few minutes of loss of concentration.

Davidovich, supported by the public, took the opportunity to unbreak and thus return to 2-2 and in the match.

Tsitsipas nevertheless managed the break to lead 5-4 and serve to win the game.

But, lost for lost, the Spaniard with mismatched socks dropped all his shots and equalized at 5-5.

The tiebreak was dominated by Tsitsipas and, as a symbol, the two men found themselves on the ground while the match point was still rolling on the court: Davidovich because he had just made his last dive of the tournament, and Tsitsipas because the ball had just bounced out of bounds and it was sacred.

Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas after his victory in the final of the Monte-Carlo tournament, April 17, 2022 Valery HACHE AFP

Last year, a few weeks after winning his first Masters 1000 in Monte-Carlo, Tsitsipas led two sets to zero against Novak Djokovic in the Roland-Garros final before losing.

© 2022 AFP