INDIAN WELLS – Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz and Italian rival Jannik Sinner remained on course for a semi-final showdown after cruising into the quarter-finals of the ATP-WTA Indian Wells tournament on March 12.
Alcaraz sailed into the last eight as he took revenge on Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan with a 6-3, 6-3 victory.
In-form Sinner, meanwhile, booked his spot with a 7-6 (7-4), 6-1 defeat of American Ben Shelton.
Sinner’s win was his 18th straight victory dating to late last season, leaving him three wins away from his third title of the season after winning the Australian Open and Rotterdam.
“I played well in the tight moments,” said the 22-year-old world No. 3, who faces Czech Jiri Lehecka in the quarter-finals.
“I knew I would not get much rhythm from him (Shelton). I can be proud of how I played. The wind didn’t make it easier but I tried to stay positive and it worked out.”
The Italian could face Spain’s reigning Wimbledon champion Alcaraz in the semi-finals in California in what would be the latest instalment of a burgeoning rivalry.
The duo fought out an epic US Open quarter-final in 2022 and met in the semi-finals at Indian Wells and Miami Masters events last season.
As it stands, Sinner edges their head-to-head record 4-3.
Alcaraz must first navigate a quarter-final against sixth seed Alexander Zverev before any meeting with Sinner.
The Spaniard had a score to settle with the 58th-ranked Marozsan after losing their only other meeting at the 2023 Rome Masters, and the top seed reeled off 22 winners in 75 minutes to race into the last eight.
After a slow start this season and an ankle roll several weeks ago in Brazil, the 20-year-old appeared on course to continue his chase to a possible second title here.
“I was nervous before the match, I’m not going to lie. I was playing someone who beat me when I had no chances in the Rome match,” Alcaraz said.
But he walked off a winner completely pleased with his performance.
“Let’s say (it was) almost perfect. I can play better. But I’m really happy with the way I approached the match, the way that I played, and my feelings,” he added.
In other news, Rafael Nadal is set to make his return to the ATP Tour on the clay courts of Monte Carlo in April, the organisers announced on March 12.
“I saw him training with his coaches on a private court... and I had the impression I was listening to a wild beast. He hits like he’s never hit before,” said tournament director David Massey.
“He felt some discomfort, so he decided not to play at Indian Wells, but the tests he underwent showed nothing.”
Nadal, who holds 22 Grand Slam titles, has dropped to 652nd in the rankings this week and used a protected ranking of ninth to get into the main draw in Monte Carlo, the first clay-court Masters 1000 event of the season.
The clay specialist has won the tournament 11 times in his career but, since his last victory in 2018, he fell at the semi-finals in 2019, the quarter-finals in 2021 and missed the 2020, 2022 and 2023 editions.
“We sent him two boxes of balls to Mallorca so that he could practise (with the balls that will be used in the tournament),” added Massey.
The Spaniard missed almost all of the 2023 season with abdominal and other injuries and has played only the Brisbane International this season, where he suffered a flare-up of a hip injury and missed the Australian Open.
The 37-year-old was set to make his comeback at Indian Wells but pulled out last week without playing a point.
The Monte Carlo Masters begins on April 7 and marks the beginning of the clay-court season where Nadal may well play his final French Open, a Grand Slam event he has won a record 14 times.
AFP, REUTERS
