Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz inflicted his first defeat of 2024 on Jannik Sinner, winner of the Australian Open, on Saturday, ahead of a final at the Masters 1000 in Indian Wells against Daniil Medvedev.
Alcaraz's victory (1-6, 6-3, 6-2) ended Sinner's streak of 19 wins, and ensures the Spaniard remains number 2 in the world rankings next week.
“It's incredible for me to be able to end something like that
,” said Spaniard Alcaraz about the end of the Italian's winning streak.
Sunday's duel against Russian Daniil Medvedev, world number 4, will feature the same lineup as in the final of the Californian tournament played last year.
Medvedev also had to fight to win in three sets (1-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2) against the American Tommy Paul (17th).
In the final, he will try to prevent Alcaraz from becoming the first player to keep his title at Indian Wells since Novak Djokovic's three consecutive crowns from 2014 to 2016.
I always demand the best from myself against him and it's the same for him.
Carlos Alcaraz
The semi-final between Alcaraz and Sinner was interrupted for three hours due to rain, at 2-1 in the first set, but the wait was worth it as the two young stars put on a show.
“Matches with Jannik are always special
,” commented Alcaraz.
“I always demand the best from myself against him and it’s the same for him.
We put magic on the pitch, incredible points and for the public, it’s also wonderful
,” he added.
Sinner quickly took the initiative in the restart, using her depth and precision to win four straight games and take the first set.
He saved the only break point he faced, and outdistanced his opponent 5-1, throwing himself on a short ball for a cross-court passing winner on the break point.
Alcaraz reacted in the second set by changing his style, moving back to give himself more time on returns and thus gradually return to the match.
He broke Sinner with a deep volley winner for a 3-1 lead and held on for 4-1.
The Spaniard saved several break points in the 7th and 9th games and concluded the set with a winning shot.
It's definitely not the ending I wanted, but playing against him is always difficult.
Jannik Sinner
“I stayed mentally strong
,” Alcaraz said.
“
I think it’s a very important element in this match.
This kind of match, with a set behind against someone who plays an incredible game, I'm really happy with what I did
,” he commented.
Some imprecise forehands from Sinner allowed Alcaraz to dominate the third game of the final set and he earned the break with a high backhand volley to end another difficult rally.
Sinner suddenly seemed powerless to stop Alcaraz, who won five consecutive games and ended up winning the game thanks to a victorious forehand on his third match point.
This is the second year in a row that Alcaraz has stopped Sinner in the semi-finals of Indian Wells.
“It’s definitely not the ending I wanted, but playing against him is always difficult
,” Sinner reacted.
“I tried to play good tennis, which I did, especially in the first set.
Then I made a few mistakes.
The dynamic has changed.
He raised his level.”
Medvedev said the cold conditions of the evening made it difficult to establish a rhythm in the first set against Paul, but like Alcaraz, he was able to make some adjustments.
The Russian won the first four games of the second set, but Paul attacked at the net to come back and force the tiebreaker, in which the American twisted his ankle on the sixth point.
Medvedev won the final five points of the tiebreaker to tie it at one set and took a 5-1 lead in the third set, ultimately fending off two break points in the final game to close out.
He now has a chance to gain revenge for last year's loss to Alcaraz and win the only one of the six Masters 1000 hard-court titles he has yet to win.
“I know what happened last year, so I'm going to do my best to try to reverse the trend, play better, play harder, play more on the lines, hit more aces, things like that
,” Medvedev said.
“I hope I can do it.”