(Indian Wells, California) Plagued by doubt before the tournament, the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz dominated in the final like last year the Russian Daniil Medvedev (7-6 and 6-1) to win the Masters 1000 of Indian Wells , Sunday.
The 20-year-old Spaniard, world number two who reached the top of the bill at such a young age, chased away the first small period of doubt in his career in the Californian desert.
“I had many doubts before the tournament. I wasn’t sure I would play at my best, there was the uncertainty of my ankle, but ultimately, once on the court, I felt better and better after each match,” he said. declared.
Alcaraz was hit in the right ankle three weeks ago in Rio (withdrawal), arriving at Indian Wells without much reference, having lost in the quarter-finals at the Australian Open, then in the semi-final of the ATP 250 from Buenos Aires.
The Spaniard had not won a tournament since his second Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in July 2023, after the United States Open in 2022.
“I really had a difficult few months. Let’s just say that these last two months I’ve had a hard time finding myself. I was not happy, let’s say, to come on the field,” Alcaraz said at a press conference.
“Fun to play”
“Winning this tournament was very important for me, because I overcame mental and physical problems. That’s why it was important, not because I hadn’t won a tournament since Wimbledon. I don’t care if I win a competition or not, what matters to me is how I feel, if I have fun playing tennis. »
I found myself during this tournament.
Carlos Alcaraz
At Indian Wells, after dropping the first round of his tournament against the Italian Matteo Arnaldi, Alcaraz then pulled off a successful demonstration against the German Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinals (6-3 and 6-1), before debunking the Italian Jannik Sinner, undefeated in 2024 until then, in the semi-final (1-6, 6-3 and 6-2).
The Spanish prodigy thus won his 13e title, the 5e in Masters 1000, and will be a favorite in Miami, a tournament which begins on Wednesday for men, where he triumphed in 2022.
The Serbian Novak Djokovic, eliminated in the third round at Indian Wells, will remain world number one this Monday with 920 points ahead of Alcaraz.
The slow courts and high bounce of Indian Wells therefore helped the Spaniard to revive, he who had triumphed at “Tennis Paradise” last year also against Medvedev in the final.
” No regrets “
The Murcian did not attack his title defense well on Sunday, making a lot of mistakes for a quick break from Medvedev in the first set. Alcaraz in turn broke Medvedev and found his rhythm, in a tense first set.
PHOTO JAYNE KAMIN-ONCEA, USA TODAY SPORTS
Daniel Medvedev
Between magnificent points and quick faults, the two players fiercely contested the tiebreaker, which finally turned to the advantage of the Spaniard (7-5) on a fault from Medvedev after a long exchange.
Sometimes getting annoyed with the referee, the 28-year-old Russian and world number four then lowered his guard, suffering from the power of Alcaraz, author for example of a winning forehand at more than 160 km/h at 3-1 in a second set that was ultimately one-sided.
“I have no regrets. At one point in the first round he managed to raise his level. I tried to keep up with him, but I was slightly inferior. Then this small gap continued to grow,” analyzed Medvedev.
“I may have also been a little tired physically and mentally, he was able to take advantage of it, which explains the score of 6-1 in the second set. Anyway, I hope that’s the explanation. »