After defeating Jannik Sinner in a thrilling comeback match, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz is still ranked second in the world.
On Sunday at 5.30 p.m., the Spaniard will take on Daniil Medvedev in the Indian Wells final, which will be shown exclusively on Sky Sports Tennis.
Carlos Alcaraz ended Jannik Sinner’s flawless start to the year with a thrilling three-set victory, keeping him on track to defend the BNP Paribas Open title in Indian Wells.
In the California desert, just three games were played prior to a three-hour rain delay. However, upon their return, Alcaraz managed to turn the match around and advance to his sixth Masters 1000 final with a 1-6 6-3 6-2 triumph.
After defeating 17th seed Tommy Paul 1-6, 7-6 (3), 6-2, Alcaraz stopped Sinner’s 19-match winning streak and put an end to the Italian’s flawless 16-0 start to the 2024 season. This puts Alcaraz in the Sunday final against fourth seed Daniil Medvedev.
I maintained my mental toughness, Alcaraz stated. That’s a crucial component of this game, in my opinion.
If you want to win these kinds of matches—where you’re up against someone who is playing an incredible game—you have to be psychologically tough.
I think it went really well because I slightly adjusted both my style and my game. Being back in the final and defeating Jannik makes me very delighted.
Compared to the previous set, I had to run more and play better defense. I continued to play strong and kept more balls in the court.
I started missing the second, third, and fourth balls even though we had a lot of lengthy rallies.
The Italian moved Alcaraz about the baseline in an almost faultless first half with his powerful groundstrokes and depth of shot.
In a major match between the competitors and close friends, the Australian Open champion struck six winners, winning 65% (11–17) of his first serve points and 86% (6-7) of his second serve points.
Alcaraz, though, recovered in the second set. He won it 3-2 with a put-away volley after breaking the serve with a strong forehand, and he finished with a drop shot that seemed to be falling from the sky.
In the third set, as Sinner was serving, the Italian dove to save a ball from being out of play at break point by scraping his hands along the abrasive hard surface.
After the exchange, Sinner seemed troubled by something in his left hand and a sore calf muscle, while Alcaraz’s athletic volley sealed the break.
The Wimbledon champion led a suddenly erroneous Sinner by a double break and 4-1 with a forehand that went well outside of the mark.
He soon clinched the victory with a crosscourt forehand winner to prevent Sinner from regaining his world number two status.
In his match against Paul, Medvedev would likewise had to endure a laborious opening set. However, he would fend off Paul in a second-set tiebreaker and win the match with ease in the third.
It is a rematch of the Indian Wells final in 2023, where Alcaraz defeated Medvedev 6-3 6-2.
Carlos was playing quite well, especially in the second and third sets, when I saw him today, according to Medvedev.
Knowing what transpired the previous year, I will do everything in my power to try to turn this around—play stronger, play better, hit more aces, and so on.
With luck, I’ll be able to pull it off. I’ll heal and prepare for tomorrow’s struggle.
