World No.1 Carlos Alcaraz came up with his best as he kickstarted his clay season on a winning note. The Spaniard bested Argentina’s Sebastian Baez convincingly by 6-1, 6-3 in the opening round of the Monte Carlo Masters.

The defending champion delivered a comprehensive 70-win win against the Argentine. The top seed was delighted with his win and admitted he surprised himself with his high level.

“It’s been a really good start to the tournament for me,” said Alcaraz. “To be honest, I surprised myself with the level. I thought I was going to play a little bit worse, I would say, but I’m just happy with everything I’ve done today. Maybe a couple of things I didn’t do well in the second set. I let him get into the match, but overall, I’m just happy to play matches again on clay.”

Alcaraz broke Baez’s serve on five occasions and dropped his serve on a solitary occasion.

Meanwhile, if Jannik Sinner goes all the way in Monte Carlo Masters, he will leapfrog Alcaraz for the number one rank in the PIF rankings.

“I’m going to lose No. 1 in the world [at some point]. I don’t know if it is going to be at this tournament or [another] one,” said Alcaraz. “I’m defending a bunch of points that are going to be really difficult to defend. Even if I defend them, Jannik is going to add some points. I will just try to play my best and let’s see what happens, but for me the No. 1 spot is not in my mind right now. I’m just trying to feel the best way on clay courts and let’s see how the clay swing goes.”

Alcaraz will either face Etcheverry or Atmane next at the ATP Masters 1000 event.