Tennis
Medvedev ends Alcaraz’s perfect start to 2026 season on way to Indian Wells final
World No.1 Carlos Alcaraz has been riding on Cloud nine with a perfect start to the 2026 season. But on Saturday, the started came to an abrupt hand at the hands of a Russian.
Daniil Medvedev shocked the Spaniard 6-3, 7-6(3) at the BNP Paribas Open to snap the World No. 1’s 16-match winning streak and hand the 22-year-old his first loss of the season in the semifinals at the ATP Masters 1000 event.
“Playing someone like Carlos, you play many times, you lose many times,” Medvedev said. “He’s an amazing player with amazing shots, defence, attack, return, everything. So, you need to be at your best.”
Medvedev controlled the clash with aggressive shot-making and showed the tennis with which he once reached World No. 1. In the second set, down an early break and later facing two set points at 4-5, Medvedev served with authority and forced errors from Alcaraz on both points, denying him any chance of a comeback.
Medvedev won four of the five break points he faced overall, and converted both chances he created. He also won 74 per cent (23/31) of his second-serve points.
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The 30-year-old’s composure under pressure proved decisive, allowing him to close out the straight-sets victory in one hour and 37 minutes and claim revenge against the Spaniard, who had beaten him in the Indian Wells final in 2023 and 2024.
“I was hanging in, in the second set, as I could,” Medvedev said. “But (I am) playing great tennis, super happy to beat someone as strong as him.”
Medvedev advances to first Masters 1000 final
With the victory, Medvedev advanced to his first Masters 1000 final since reaching the Indian Wells title match in 2024. The former World No. 1 will meet Jannik Sinner in Sunday’s championship match, with the Italian holding an 8-7 lead.
With his win over Alcaraz, Medvedev earned a Tour-leading 18th win of the season. Through to his third championship match of the season, Medvedev will now aim to maintain his perfect record in 2026 finals after having triumphed at the ATP 250 event in Brisbane and the ATP 500 event in Dubai.
Sunday’s final will mark the first meeting between Sinner and Medvedev since the 2024 Nitto ATP Finals. Both players are yet to drop a set this fortnight in the California desert. Medvedev has now won 18 sets in a row, a streak that began at the start of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
“If I manage to maintain the level I had throughout the tournament and maybe even raise it, I will have my chances,” he said.
Sinner races past Zverev in a 6-2, 6-4 win
Earlier, Sinner wasted little time in racing to a 6-2, 6-4 semifinal victory against fourth seed Alexander Zverev. Sinner, who had fallen in the last four on his past two appearances in Indian Wells, produced a razor-sharp all-around showing to earn his sixth consecutive tour-level win against Zverev and seal a maiden championship-match appearance in ‘Tennis Paradise’.
Jannik Sinner wasted little time in racing to a 6-2, 6-4 semifinal victory against fourth seed Alexander Zverev. Pic: Tennis Infinity
Zverev had initially made a confident start to to the semifinal encounter. The German won his first eight points on serve but, with Sinner taking up a deep return position to ensure he got into rallies, that serenity quickly faded.
The Italian converted a break point at 30/40 in each of the fifth and seventh games, with Zverev pushing a forehand wide on both occasions to hand his opponent the break. In the eighth game, Sinner promptly closed out a set in which he dropped just four points behind serve.
“It was a bit of a gameplan before the match, but it also depends on how I’m feeling,” said Sinner, when asked about the variety in return position he deployed to counter Zverev’s big serve. “I think that was the key today, trying to mix it up. Every match against him is very tough, a tough test, so I’m happy to face him. It’s a match I was looking forward to.”