Stronger than the wind and the ardor of his 17-year-old younger brother Carlos Alcaraz, Rafael Nadal won his 20th match in a row in 2022 to reach the final of the Indian Wells Masters 1000, where the surprising American Taylor awaits him. Fritz.
To preserve his invincibility, the Spaniard N.4 world, record holder of the number of Grand Slams won (21) since his coronation at the Australian Open, at the end of January, had to put himself in ultimate warrior mode, facing his talented compatriot destined to become his successor sooner or later.
But not right now.
Because Nadal, who found himself facing an opponent of a completely different caliber than the one he had corrected in Madrid last year (6-1, 6-2) for their first confrontation, did not at all the intention of passing on the slightest torch.
And he proved it by winning 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in 3h12, after a very big fight, the outcome of which was all the more uncertain, as the violent wind and swirling has long disrupted proceedings.
“It was a very difficult game. Carlos has a very high level. He has all the assets, youth, physique. I approached the meeting as if I were playing against one of the best in the world, which is the reality,” Nadal paid tribute to him.
This opposition between the master and the student, so awaited by the Spain of tennis, decidedly very spoiled, first saw Nadal, more aggressive, pocketing the first set while having all the same wasted in passing 14 break points on 17 (!).
Wind gusts
The second round, during which the two men, terribly embarrassed in the service, were poisoned by the wind which had become “crazy”, blowing towels and papers on the court, smiled on Alcaraz whose combativeness was just as remarkable.
In the third set, Eole ended up leaving the star to the two actors and the game was able to increase in intensity, offering the 16,000 spectators many spectacular points, such as this rally, during which Alcaraz sprinted in all directions, punctuated by a superb reflex volley from Nadal, to save a break point.
At 4-3 in his favour, the Mallorcan was then briefly manipulated by a physio at the level of the left pectoral and back. And because he knows how to do that almost better than anyone, after breaking up, he pulled out all the stops.
The “Gusts” were no longer those of the wind but those of Nadal, to the dismay of Alcaraz, who never recovered.
“I thought I could win in the third set. I had break opportunities. So many points that I almost won… but he beat me in those exact moments. “Rafa” has a thousand lives”, commented the loser at a press conference.
Trimmed phalanges
“Rafa”, who was believed to have been lost to tennis last year after a left foot injury which continues to make him suffer, has once again demonstrated how stainless and thirsty for victories he is. On Sunday, he will try to lift the trophy a 4th time in the Californian desert after 2007, 2009 and 2013. He would then equal Novak Djokovic in the number of Masters 1000 won (37).
His rival will be a neophyte in the final of a competition in this category, the astonishing Taylor Fritz (20th) who dismissed 7-5, 6-4 Andrey Rublev (7th), yet a favorite.
Aged 24, Fritz, semi-finalist of the tournament last year, was rewarded for his attacking approach. “I really wanted to play aggressive, set the tone from the start of the game. Andrey played much better in the second set, but I managed to hold on until I seized my chance,” he summed up.
He thus won his showdown with Rublev, who made too many mistakes to hope for another outcome. And it is not his violent punches on the string of his racket, causing cuts on the knuckles, which have changed much.
End of series therefore for the Russian who remained on two victories in Marseille then Doha and conceded there his first defeat in 14 matches.
First American, since John Isner in 2012, to reach the final in Indian Wells, Fritz can become the first from his country to triumph there since Andre Agassi in 2001. Which would constitute a victory much more prestigious than his only title, won on the Eastbourne turf in 2019.
Alcaraz thought he could beat Nadal, “but ‘Rafa’ has a thousand lives”
“I thought I would beat him at times, but “Rafa” has a thousand lives,” said Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz (19th in the world), stopped by his glorious elder on Saturday in the semi-final of the Masters 1000 in Indian Wells.
“I thought I could win in the third. I had break opportunities. So many points that I almost won, but he beat me in those exact moments. Rafa has a thousand lives. Even if he is on the ground, he is able to play at a high level in difficult times,” commented Alcaraz at a press conference.
For his second confrontation with Nadal, after the correction received last year on clay in Madrid (6-1, 6-2), the 18-year-old player showed all the progress made despite the defeat 6-4, 4 -6, 6-3 in 3h12 of a fierce fight.
“My level of play has improved, I feel really more comfortable on the court, more mature too. Now I know how to play against these kind of players, I feel that I belong to their category. I think I will play again against Rafa and the other best players this year. I feel ready to face them”, estimated Alcaraz, revealed last September at the US Open where he had reached the quarter-finals by dismissing the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, then 3rd in the world.
On the central of Indian Wells, he had not only Nadal to manage, but also a violent and swirling wind in the second leg which poisoned them.
“The conditions were difficult. It was not a tennis match in the second set. But the atmosphere was incredible and we survived the wind. In the third set, we played very good tennis, on both sides,” he said.
Did he enjoy himself, despite the defeat? “Yes, sometimes after losing some points, I smiled a little bit, it was incredible points from ‘Rafa’…”, he replied.