MONTE CARLO, April 11 (Reuters) - Defending champion and top ⁠seed Carlos Alcaraz beat Valentin Vacherot 6-4 6-4 on Saturday to end the Monegasque's fairytale run at the ⁠Monte-Carlo Masters and set up a blockbuster final against Jannik Sinner.

Vacherot, who also enjoyed a breakthrough run at ‌the Shanghai Masters nL2N3VT02W in October, knocked out Lorenzo Musetti, Hubert Hurkacz and Alex de Minaur on his way to the Monte Carlo semi-finals. The 27-year-old was the first Monegasque player to reach the last four in the Principality.

Alcaraz struck first in the opening set, breaking serve to move 2-1 ahead ​before sealing the set with an ace.

Just as the seven-times Grand Slam champion ⁠appeared to be cruising, Vacherot mounted a spirited ⁠fightback and edged ahead 4-3 in the second set. Alcaraz, however, proved too strong, winning three successive games to seal victory.

With ⁠the ‌win, Alcaraz became only the third player to reach 10 ATP 1000 finals before the age of 23, joining Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic since the format began in 1990.

With the world number one ranking on the line, Alcaraz ⁠said he was excited about facing Sinner for the first time this year.