The Spaniard will face Medvedev in the final of the first Masters 1,000 of the season
The Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz defeated (7-6 (4), 6-3) the Italian Jannik Sinner this Saturday to advance to the final in the Indian Wells tournament, the first Masters 1,000 of the season, where he will face the Russian Daniil Medvedev in search of the eighth title of his career and return to number one in the world.
Alcaraz, who made it 3-2 in direct duels with another of the youngsters called to dominate the circuit, shook off the initial tension and reached his third final of 2023, in three tournaments played, with the option of a second title this season. after the one in Buenos Aires. In addition, the current US Open champion will return to number one that he lost to Novak Djokovic in January if he beats a Medvedev who has 19 consecutive victories in the Californian final.
With the epic chapter of the quarterfinals of the US Open on the retina and a final at stake, the management of the nerves was through neighborhoods between San Cándido and El Palmar. Alcaraz was the one who knew how to suffer in the first set, full of errors with his forehand and with more difficulties in his serve, to save a partial ball and score the opening set in the ‘tie-break’.
Sinner pushed at the beginning, but the Spaniard got to work and achieved the ‘break’ in the fifth game, the tense moment for the Italian. With the wind in favor, Juan Carlos Ferrero’s pupil derailed in the eighth game, a blank break that gave wings to his rival. The Spaniard stopped the bleeding in time to save that set ball and force a sudden death in which he commanded again.
The Murcian became strong, recovered his forehand and began to have fun at the start of the second set. The Italian, a specialist in surviving, found himself with a wall of drop shots, lobs and winners from Alcaraz in the 2-0. The Spaniard’s show made the audience wake up with the best point of the afternoon, a tremendous exchange that closed with an impossible lob (3-0).
Sinner did not flinch and continued to hit with everything, coming out unscathed from three ‘break’ balls in the sixth game (4-2). The man from Palmar hesitated for a moment thinking about that lost opportunity but reacted to a 0-30 to make it 5-2, who still had to work to reach the final in Indian Wells. Another high level to conquer at 19 years of age.
In search of his third Masters 1,000 and world number one, Alcaraz will face an unstoppable Medvedev, who had 19 consecutive victories by beating American Frances Tiafoe 7-5, 7-6(4) in the other semifinal. The Russian, who comes from being champion in Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai and aspires to the 19th title in his record, won the only precedent from the Spanish, at Wimbledon in 2021.
