Alcaraz enters French Open final after Musetti retires

Carlos Alcaraz kept his Roland Garros title defence on track as he booked his spot in the final after eighth seed Lorenzo Musetti retired injured in the fourth set of their semi-final on Friday.

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The Spaniard led 4-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-0, 2-0 after two hours and 25 minutes of play under the roof on Court Philippe Chatrier when Musetti quit with a thigh issue.

Second seed Alcaraz will defend his crown on Sunday against either world number one Jannik Sinner or 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic.

"It's been three intense weeks and now I have one step to make," he said. "I'll give everything on Sunday, I've been playing great tennis this tournament."

He now leads 23-year-old Musetti 6-1 in their head-to-head series, winning all three of their clay-court battles this season after victories in the final at Monte Carlo and semi-finals of the Italian Open.

The 22-year-old, who is attempting to become only the third man to retain his Roland Garros title this century after Rafa Nadal and Gustavo Kuerten, is now into his second French Open showpiece match, and fifth major final overall.

Just as in the Monte Carlo final in April, it was the Tuscan who clinched the first set in the latest edition of the budding Alcaraz-Musetti rivalry.