Indian Wells: Carlos Alcaraz 'stayed strong mentally' in win over Jannik Sinner to set up final against Daniil Medvedev
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Published 17/03/2024 at 11:09 GMT
He needed a classic comeback to do it, but Carlos Alcaraz beat Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals at Indian Wells on Saturday evening, setting up a clash with Daniil Medvedev in Sunday's decider. Sinner glided through the first set, winning 6-1 in 34 minutes, but lost his way in the second before being put away in the third. Defending champion Alcaraz halted Sinner's winning streak at 19.
Watch highlights as Alcaraz beats Sinner at Indian Wells to end Italian’s winning run
Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz secured a return to the final at Indian Wells on Saturday evening with a come-from-behind 1-6 6-3 6-2 victory over Jannik Sinner, after which the Spaniard said he had to stay "strong mentally".
It was a repeat of last year's semi-final, which also saw Alcaraz beat Sinner to reach the decider.
Sinner, on a 19-match winning streak which included the Australian Open and Rotterdam titles, swept through the first set in 34 minutes. Twice breaking Alcaraz's serve, and defending a break point of his own, Sinner seemed well on the way to win No. 20.
The world No. 2 came out sharper in the second set, blazing through his service games with a minimum of fuss, and picking up a crucial break of his own. His decision to come to the net early and often paid dividends.
Sinner twice looked to break back, but Alcaraz held and took the set after 46 minutes.
The Italian was on the back foot in the third set, too. Twice defending break points only to lose the games, Sinner was 5-2 down in the eighth game as Alcaraz looked to serve out the match.
The Spaniard raced to 40-0, and while the desperate Sinner pulled it back to 40-30 he was only delaying the inevitable.
Alcaraz completed his comeback victory in two hours and three minutes on court.
Speaking after the match, Alcaraz knew he had been in a fight.
He said: "I stayed strong mentally and that’s very important. I had to run more, defend better than I did in the first set. Put more balls in. Stay strong on the court."
Not only earning him a place in the final, Alcaraz's victory also ensured he retained his No. 2 ranking, which Sinner would have claimed with a victory.
On the other side of the draw, Daniil Medvedev made a similarly slow start against Tommy Paul. The American raced through the first set, winning it 6-1 in 30 minutes, before his Russian opponent rallied in the second. There, Medvedev blazed into a 4-0 lead and also led 5-2 but the dogged Paul forced a tie-break.
Medvedev eventually took the set after over an hour, but Paul had made him fight for every point.
Two breaks of serve in the third put Medvedev 4-1 up and Paul was unable to repeat the mini-comeback. This time, Medvedev cemented his position and served out the match to win 1-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-2.
Medvedev secures a return to the final one year after losing to the same opponent.
Looking ahead to the rematch, Medvedev spoke to the press.
He said: "I saw Carlos today, he was playing pretty well, second and third set especially. I know what happened last year so I’m going to try my best to try to turn this around, to play better, to play stronger, more on the lines, hit more aces, stuff like this. Hopefully I will be able to do it. I will recover and get ready for the fight tomorrow.”
Alcaraz and Medvedev have met five times in ATP tournaments, with the Spaniard holding a 3-2 advantage.
Both remain in the hunt for their maiden titles of 2024.
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