Alcaraz routs Medvedev in Indian Wells final, reclaims No. 1 ranking
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[March 20, 2023]
(Reuters) -Top seed Carlos Alcaraz snapped Daniil Medvedev's
19-match win streak with a 6-3 6-2 rout in the Indian Wells final on
Sunday that will see him leapfrog Novak Djokovic and return to world
number one in the rankings.
Alcaraz did not drop a set across six matches in the tournament and
his performance in the California desert gives him an added boost of
confidence ahead of his Miami Open title defence.
"I'm playing great. Of course today, the conditions today were
pretty tough. Of course Daniil didn't play at his best, obviously,"
said Alcaraz.
"All I can say is I'm really happy with my performance, the way that
I was playing this tournament. I'm looking forward to playing this
level in Miami as well."
Alcaraz enjoyed a dream start to the matchup of first-time Indian
Wells finalists as he got an early break for a 2-0 lead and dropped
just six points on serve, racing through the opening set in 36
minutes.
Russian fifth seed Medvedev, who was looking to add another title to
the ones he collected in Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai over the last
month, was unable to stop the bleeding and had no answer for the
Spaniard's brilliance the rest of the way.
Alcaraz broke to love in the first game of the second set and held
at love for a 2-0 lead as a resigned Medvedev dropped 10 consecutive
points dating back to the first frame.
The hard-hitting Spaniard kept dragging Medvedev from corner to
corner and consolidated another break for a commanding 4-0 lead
while barely breaking a sweat as he closed out a seemingly
stress-free victory in 70 minutes without facing a break point.
[to top of second column] |
Mar 19, 2023; Indian Wells, CA, USA;
Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) poses with his coaches Juan Carlos Ferrero and
Juanjo Moreno after defeating Daniil Medvedev (RUS) in the men’s
final of the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
A bruised and battered Medvedev was clearly not at
his best after having rolled his right ankle in the fourth round and
then cutting open his thumb in the quarter-final. He was also unable
to deal with the windy conditions during the final.
"It was a surprising week in many aspects," said Medvedev. "The
ankle, the thumb, the tennis, wind, whatever. But we almost made it.
... I will try to be better next time."
The victory marked the third ATP Masters 1000 trophy for 19-year-old
Alcaraz, who became the youngest world number one last September
when he won the U.S. Open and held that spot for 20 weeks until
Djokovic reclaimed it in January.
Djokovic withdrew from the draw for the Indian Wells event in an
indication that his application for a COVID-19 vaccine waiver to
enter the U.S. might have failed. The Serbian has also withdrawn
from the Miami Open.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Chris Reese/Peter
Rutherford)
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