Alcaraz and Sinner cruise into Indian Wells quarters

Carlos Alcaraz, the defending champion, advanced to the quarter-finals of the ATP-WTA Indian Wells Masters on Tuesday by defeating Fabian Marozsan 6-3, 6-3 in a revengeful victory.

The Hungarian player, ranked 58th, had previously defeated the Spanish defending champion at the Rome Masters last year. However, in their recent match, Alcaraz dominated from the start, breaking his opponent's serve twice in the first set and winning 12 out of the first 13 points in the second set. With a total of 22 winners in just 75 minutes, the top seed quickly advanced to the quarter-finals.

Despite a slow start to the season and an ankle injury in Brazil, Alcaraz seems determined to pursue his second title here.

Reflecting on the match, the winner admitted feeling nervous beforehand, considering his previous loss to the same opponent.

However, he was pleased with his performance this time, acknowledging that he executed the necessary strategies that he had failed to implement before.

Alcaraz played exceptionally well in the first set and maintained his momentum in the second, aiming to break his opponent's serve early and take the lead in the score.

Having achieved his 50th Masters victory and securing his ninth consecutive win in Indian Wells, the world number two is now on track for a potential clash with Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals.

However, he must first overcome Alexander Zverev. The German sixth seed displayed his powerful game against Australian Alex de Minaur, eventually prevailing with a 5-7, 6-2, 6-3 victory.

On the other hand, Sinner faced challenging conditions against American Ben Shelton but managed to win a tight first set and comfortably secure a 7-6(4), 6-1 victory in the second set, maintaining his flawless record in 2024.

Sinner expressed his determination to stay positive throughout the match, particularly during difficult moments in the first set, and credited his positive start in the second set for boosting his confidence.

In the quarter-finals, Sinner, the third seed, will be considered the favorite as he faces Jiri Lehecka for the first time.

Lehecka, who was seeded 32nd, continued his impressive run by defeating the 11th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas with a commanding 6-2, 6-4 victory.

This win not only secured his place in the quarter-finals of a Masters 1000 event for the first time in his career, but also followed his previous upset against the fifth seed Andrey Rublev.

The 22-year-old Czech showcased his skills by hitting 25 winners against his Greek opponent and maintaining a flawless serve in his last two matches.