Meticulous preparation was again at the heart of Jannik Sinner's breakthrough Monte Carlo Masters triumph, as his win over Carlos Alcaraz in Sunday's final took him back to the top of the world rankings and laid down a marker for the rest of the clay season.
After completing the "Sunshine Double" of hardcourt titles at Indian Wells and Miami, Sinner was widely expected to skip Monte Carlo to recharge his batteries but the 24-year-old Italian was keen to build momentum.
His 7-6(5) 6-3 victory over Alcaraz earned him his first big title on the sport's slowest surface and made him the only player after Novak Djokovic in 2015 to claim the first three Masters titles of a season.
"It's not easy at all. I'm surprised in a very good way," Sinner told reporters, according to Reuters.
While Sinner arrived early at Indian Wells last month to prepare his body for the heat of the Californian desert, his focus ahead of Monte Carlo was more tactical, centered on refining shot selection and adapting to each opponent.
"Every day I wake up and I try to improve and get better as a player," Sinner explained.
"Here, we did it day by day trying to understand what the best style is against every opponent, because I haven't played the same kind of tennis against everyone.
"It means a lot to me and I'll need a bit of time to realize what happened. It's going to be good having some days off now away from the courts.
"Everything was quite hectic, one tournament to the other, so we'll see what's coming next."
Sinner is expected to return to action in Madrid later this month or in Rome at the beginning of May. His coach, Simone Vagnozzi, said the Monte Carlo week provided clear evidence of the Italian's progress on clay.
"We're really happy because after the first two matches he started to feel better, more drop shots, more variation with the height of the ball and with the serve," Vagnozzi said.
"We're really impressed with his level."
The Monte Carlo title will give Sinner a psychological boost with the French Open just around the corner.
Alcaraz, who beat his rival in last year's Roland Garros final over five sets, is fully aware how much Sinner has improved on clay.
"We've seen Jannik's level on clay and I think he's been improving a lot year by year," said Alcaraz.
"He's reaching a level on clay that's going to be really dangerous for everybody."
The French Open main draw begins on May 24.
