Jannik Sinner’s string of victories stops at 19 (he was undefeated in 2024) and the assault on number 2 in the ATP world ranking fades away. The blue was defeated in three sets by Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinal of the Masters 1000 tournament in Indian Wells, California, at the end of a match experienced on and off. The start of the match – following a suspension of regarding three hours due to rain – saw an overflowing Sinner, capable of dominating the game from the baseline without leaving any chance for the opponent, who appeared to be in confusion. 36 minutes were enough to close the score to 6-1.
In the stands, numerous VIPs, including Bill Gates and Charlize Theron, applauded the Italian’s winning shots. In the second set, however, Alcaraz regained his concentration, stimulated by his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, and changed tactics, managing to reduce the number of unprovoked errors. The match was rebalanced: the Spaniard made a break and took the lead to 3-1, Sinner had more opportunities to make a counter-break but missed them. Alcaraz thus managed to close the set 6-3.
In the third set the situation was reversed with the young talent from Murcia who took control of the game, alternating sharp shots from the baseline with deadly short balls. Sinner suffered the inertia of the match and had to deal with a serve that lost effectiveness as the minutes passed. Added to this were discomfort in his left calf, a blow to the elbow following a recovery at the net, which left him in pain, and too many unprovoked errors (38, of which 27 were with the forehand). Alcaraz then had an easy time closing the set with a clear 6-2.
The count of the challenges between the two young talents is now 5-4 in favor of the Iberian. Sinner might have his revenge already in the next few days: both are in fact registered for the Masters 1000 tournament in Miami and, following Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal, they will only be able to meet in the final. But first Alcaraz will play for the Indian Wells title once morest the Russian Daniil Medvedev, who beat the American Tommy Paul 1-6, 7-6 (3), 6-2 in the other semifinal.
«I have been positive throughout this series of victories, I remain positive even now, because I lost in the semifinals of Indian Wells, which is still an excellent result. Now, the next tournament is Miami. So I’m already focused on Miami” said Sinner following the match. «It’s certainly hard for everything to end like this here – he added – because for me this is a truly special place to play. Alcaraz? You’re always impressed when you play once morest him, he moves very, very quickly. Especially on this pitch, where the ball bounces very high, it’s not easy to play once morest him, because he can play with a lot of spin. But what I missed today was the fact that I was too predictable »he concluded.
#Sinner #stops #front #Alcaraz #postpones #assault #2nd #place #ATP
2024-03-17 21:38:58
