All third round singles matches are scheduled for Thursday in Monte Carlo.
In the absence of World No.1 Jannik Sinner, the ATP tour has been filled with upsets and surprise champions. Jack Draper and Jakub Mensik both won their first Masters 1000 titles last month. With top-seeded Alexander Zverev and two-time champion Novak Djokovic both losing their opening matches in Monte Carlo, will another new Masters champion be crowned this week?
Thursday sees all eight round of 16 matches take place, headlined by a matchup between the top two Italians not named Sinner: Lorenzo Musetti and Matteo Berrettini. Earlier in the day, 2023 champion Andrey Rublev takes on French No.1 Arthur Fils. Plus Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, and former champions Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev will all play on Thursday.
Each day, this preview will analyze the most intriguing matchup, while highlighting other notable matches on the schedule. Thursday’s play gets underway at 11:00am local time.
Matteo Berrettini vs. Lorenzo Musetti (13) – Third on Court Rainier III
Berrettini is the player who upset Zverev in the last round, coming back from a set down to prevail 7-5 in the third. By ranking, that was the biggest victory of Matteo’s career, and he came into that match a dismal 1-13 against the top five since February of 2021. After years of injuries, Berrettini is finally back to competing with the top players in the world. He was a quarterfinalist in Miami just two weeks ago, and was within a few points of defeating World No.4 Taylor Fritz in that round. But Matteo is just 4-3 lifetime in Monte Carlo.
Musetti is 9-4 here, and was a quarterfinalist in 2023, when he upset Novak Djokovic. 9-4 is also Lorenzo’s record this season, and he’s yet to win more than two matches in a row during 2025. He has already survived a pair of three-setters this week against unseeded players (Bu, Lehecka). After a breakthrough 2024 season, Musetti has underperformed during the first three months of 2025.
These Italians have split two prior meetings. Three years ago on a hard court in Naples, Musetti won in straights. Last year on grass in Stuttgart, Berrettini prevailed in straights. In their first match on clay, I favor Lorenzo to prevail. He’s been the better performer at this level across the last few years, and it would only be normal for Matteo to have an emotional letdown coming off such a big victory on Tuesday. And unlike Berrettini, Musetti’s stylish backhand is a formidable weapon.
Other Notable Matches on Thursday:
Jack Draper (5) vs. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina – Draper is now 14-3 on the year, after a 6-1, 6-1 victory on Tuesday over Marcos Giron. Davidovich Fokina was a finalist here back in 2022, and already eliminated the 11th seed, Ben Shelton. This is their first career encounter.
Andrey Rublev (7) vs. Arthur Fils (12) – Rublev won a tight two-setter on Wednesday over Gael Monfils, bringing his Monte Carlo record to 12-6. Fils is vying to reach his third Masters quarterfinal in as many events, in just his second Monte Carlo appearance. Last year in Hong Kong on a hard court, Andrey defeated Arthur 6-2 in the third.
Daniel Altmaier vs. Carlos Alcaraz (2) – Alcaraz ended his two-match losing streak on Wednesday with a comeback victory against Francisco Cerundolo. On the same day, Altmaier ended Richard Gasquet’s final Monte Carlo appearance in three sets. This is another first-time meeting at tour level, though five years ago at a clay court Challenger, Carlitos beat Daniel in straights.
Daniil Medvedev (8) vs. Alex de Minaur (9) – Medvedev has already endured two long three-setters to this stage. De Minaur is looking to achieve his second consecutive quarterfinal in Monte Carlo. Daniil leads their head-to-head 7-3, but Alex claimed their only match on clay, which occurred last year at Roland Garros.
Nuno Borges vs. Stefanos Tsitsipas (6) – Tsitsipas is now 21-3 in Monte Carlo, and is playing for his fourth title out of the last five years. He is 1-0 against Borges, with a straight-set victory two years ago on clay.
Thursday’s full Order of Play is here.
