ATP 2025: The Best Matches of the Season

Carlos Navarro | 11 Dec 2025 | 11.02

Sinner and Alcaraz, after the Roland Garros final. Will it be the best match of the year? Source: Getty

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The 2025 season has come to an end and has left us with a multitude of moments that will endure in the memory of tennis fans. Fierce wars, battles decided at the last moment, title duels turning into wars, and some unforgettable dances: after twelve months of maximum intensity, it's time to review and recount what have been the best matches of the year, ten duels that still make us smile whenever they are recalled. Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic... nothing can go wrong in a review that serves as a preview of more great matches in 2026.

10 - Lorenzo Musetti d. Alexander Zverev 7-6(1), 6-4, Rome Quarterfinals

An artist using the clay of the Foro Italico as his personal canvas. The confirming match for Lolo, showing that his great appearance in Monte Carlo, where he reached the final, was not a mirage. The tennis and mental evolution of the Italian was tested against Sascha, who had a 6-5 and 40-0 lead to close the first set... only to meet the strong resistance of the Italian, who ended up frustrating Zverev with drop shots in the second set, driving him crazy mentally and triggering that memorable press conference (accusing him of playing to wait for the opponent's error, all this after Lolo's drop shot count reached 20). An absolute exhibition, a masterclass on how to vary tennis on clay.

9 - Carlos Alcaraz d. Ben Shelton 7-6(8), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, Roland Garros Round of 16

Ben Shelton stepped onto Philippe Chatrier convinced he could take down Carlos Alcaraz. The first step is to believe it... and few times have the American's bombs been so precise: he allowed Carlos very little room for maneuver with clean, powerful shots, connecting with the Parisian crowd through immense energy. Ben had three set points in the first set... and there, as always, emerged the Alcaraz of important moments, the one who makes an impact and steals from his opponents the belief of defeating him. The American defended his ground fiercely, though, pushing it to a fourth set, but withstanding the explosiveness of the Murcian on clay is, as of today, almost impossible. A thrilling match and a turning point in Paris.

8 - Jannik Sinner d. Novak Djokovic 6-4, 7-5, 7-6(3), Semifinals of Roland Garros

Few matches encapsulate as much symbolism as this one. Perhaps the greatest changing of the guard moment of a 2025 that has solidified the new winning duo at the top. Jannik Sinner endured everything an inspired Novak threw at him and ended up winning by sheer will, by exhaustion, by unbreakable mentality. A taste of his own medicine in a magical Parisian night, with the crowd rallying behind a Nole who never stopped believing in his triumph. The three saved match points in the closing stages of the third set were the final blow for the Balkan player, as Jannik delivered a remarkable performance with 44 winners and 36 unforced errors in slow and heavy conditions, a clear sign of his strength. A battle to remember for its high level, despite being settled in three sets.

7 - Novak Djokovic d. Lorenzo Musetti 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, Athens Final

A historic setting for the latest great battle (so far) of the wolf. In his new home, in a Greece that has welcomed him as one of its own, Djokovic showed that if motivation and physicality persist, he is still capable of offering us wars to remember. A sublime Musetti also contributed significantly to the cause, even on indoor hard court, pressing the necessary buttons to discomfort the Serbian... but Nole was a man on a mission: to capture his 101st title, equal Federer in the historical rankings, and incidentally, tear his shirt like Camarón. He did it in one of the celebrations of the year, culminating in a titanic comeback after a high-voltage match with peaks of drama that persisted until its conclusion.

6 - Arthur Fils d. Jaume Munar 7-6(3), 7-6(4), 2-6, 0-6, 6-4, 2R Roland Garros

In the folder of "impossible-to-explain matches," Arthur Fils' face is on the front page. The Frenchman has left us several, but none as extravagant, dramatic, and Kafkaesque as the one that pitted him against Munar in Paris. Almost two and a half hours into the match and the third set barely underway, an intensity and pace so heart-stopping that the Frenchman's body completely gave out: physical problems in the hip and back seemed to make it impossible for Arthur to finish the match. The pills took effect for a fifth set, which he played more with heart than head: he saved several break points at 4-4 and, in the following game, with all of France turning Suzanne Lenglen into a cauldron, he exerted pressure on a Jaume who fell just short. A volcano of emotions, a celebration of pure rage, and one of those matches with the scent of a street fight that so many fervent fans of this sport cherish.

5 - Novak Djokovic d. Carlos Alcaraz 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4, Quarterfinals of the Australian Open

Novak Djokovic's latest great performance against one of the two circuit dominators took place at his favorite hunting ground. A lesson in maturity, variety, managing crucial moments, and intelligence: everything merged to psychologically and tennis-wise subdue Alcaraz, who fell into the wolf's trap. Forced by visible physical issues, the Serb escalated his game from the second set onwards, deviating from the physical battle at the start and presenting different ball trajectories and rhythms. Carlos thought, tried to adapt, wanted to play his own game... and started to rush and watch the match slip away almost unintentionally. The Djokovic-Murray duo's greatest victory, an Australian night that served as Nole's total vindication and, to some extent, subsequently unlocked the Murcian's best version.

4 - Lorenzo Musetti d. Alex de Miñaur 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, RR ATP Finals

Purity, quality of play, drama, comeback, enthusiastic crowd, fiery winner, devastated loser. Put these ingredients into a shaker, and you will get one of the best thrillers of the year. It came unexpectedly after several lackluster matches in Turin, but the masterpiece that the Italian and Australian delivered still prevails: Lorenzo staged a comeback from 3-5 down in the third set, saving set points and sending his compatriots into ecstasy, while de Miñaur, despite playing an outstanding match and having his opponent on the ropes physically, watched as another top-10 opportunity slipped away from his grasp.

He would later declare that he was mentally on the edge, perhaps in the match that had affected him the most in his career, and it was not without reason: the encounter was one of those battles where, if a tie were possible, it would be the fairest result. Interestingly, it was the oceanic player who would advance to the semifinals, but it will undoubtedly be Lorenzo who will never forget this match.

3 - Carlos Alcaraz def. Arthur Fils 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, Monte Carlo Quarterfinals

The match that changed everything for Carlos Alcaraz. He arrived in the Principality surrounded by doubts, with the most painful defeat of his career (against Goffin in Miami), criticism for his approach to the sport, and a vacation where he didn't touch a racket, leading to a certain irregularity in his tennis. The dazzling start of Fils, one of those names capable of matching Carlos's intensity, explosiveness, and power from the baseline, did not help the cause.

With a 6-5, 5-5, and 0-40 advantage, everything seemed settled. The crowd was cheering on the Frenchman, who appeared extremely confident. After reaching the quarterfinals in Indian Wells and Miami, it seemed like his breakthrough moment in the elite had arrived... but that's when the beast of El Palmar emerged, saving three break points and turning the match in his favor like a spinning top. His forehand ignited, his cross-court shots destroyed the Frenchman's legs, and the third set turned into a display that shattered Arthur's will. It's hard to play better for a set and a half than the Frenchman did, but against Carlos, that's not enough. The victory was the turning point the Murcian needed, one of those matches where you have to get your hands dirty to win, accepting your inferiority at times, and marked the beginning of the most successful stretch of his career.

2 - Learner Tien d. Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-7(8), 1-6, 7-6(7), Second round of the Australian Open

Four hours and 53 minutes of battle. It wasn't until 2:57 in the early morning that the slender and youthful Tien raised his arms to the Melbourne sky. He had done it: he had just brought down last year's finalist, a Grand Slam champion, by giving him a taste of his own medicine, turning the tennis court into a chessboard. A wrong move by the Russian and he would fall into the trap of the American: a game of cat and mouse, a timeless tennis match that enamored the world for the first time on the Australian night.

The duel was not devoid of plot twists: Tien had a match point to close the match in the third set. He couldn't capitalize on it, Daniil reacted, and it seemed like we were in for another escape act from the Muscovite, especially after a lackluster fourth set. Later, Tien admitted that he tried to hurry to finish the set because, simply put, he needed to use the restroom... and if that was what freed him up for the fifth, the match gains in narrative: the deciding set was a constant power struggle, an almost perfect balance that the American broke in the supertiebreak. He was more patient, opened up the court better, and squeezed more out of his tennis than the Russian: the beginning of a beautiful rivalry that, hopefully, we'll experience for years on the tour.

1 - Carlos Alcaraz d. Jannik Sinner 4-6, 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(3), 7-6(2), Roland Garros Final

Words are unnecessary to talk about one of the best tennis finals in history. A miracle at Chatrier after five hours and 28 minutes of battle, one of those matches that will be passed down from generation to generation, as if it were a myth. That unforgettable ending, with Alcaraz falling onto the Parisian clay after hitting the last legendary passing shot, still sends shivers down the spines of many fans of this sport.

It served as a perfect epilogue to an unbelievable feature film, becoming more incredible as the story unfolded. From the three match points saved by Carlos when trailing 3-5, when only he seemed to believe in the comeback, to the break of a seemingly dying Jannik Sinner when the Spaniard served for the match in the fifth set; all of that was just the prelude to a final supertiebreak that unleashed the beast, with Alcaraz entering into a zone and hitting five winner shots based on pure faith. An outstanding performance to conclude a match that will never be truly narrated: an ode to tennis now enshrined in the Olympus of this sport.