Sinner and Alcaraz demolish Indian Wells opponents to make fourth round, Rublev loses

Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the current holders of the Grand Slam titles, showcased their exceptional skills on Sunday, delivering commanding performances that propelled them into the fourth round of the ATP-WTA Indian Wells Masters.

The two most promising young players in the sport demonstrated no mercy in their quick victories, with Australian Open winner Sinner dominating Jan-Lennard Struff 6-3, 6-4 and Alcaraz, the current Wimbledon champion, strengthening his title defense with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime.

The world number two Spaniard did not give his Canadian opponent any breathing space, advancing to the fourth round with his eighth consecutive victory at the tournament. A couple of experienced women players showcased impressive comebacks after maternity breaks.

Alcaraz expressed his satisfaction with his performance, stating, "It was almost a flawless match for me. I moved well, played aggressively, and made fewer mistakes."

Sinner was just as relentless in his match against Struff, securing his 17th consecutive victory since Italy's Davis Cup triumph in November.

Sinner hit 27 winners against Struff, who provided the third seed with ample opportunities on the court.

"We prepared thoroughly, I studied his tactics," Sinner commented. "I executed well and served effectively under pressure. Overall, I am very pleased with today's performance, I felt comfortable on the court."

Alcaraz won the last five games of the first set and broke Auger-Aliassime's serve at the beginning of the second set, repeating his victory over the Canadian from the 2023 quarter-finals.

The second seed sealed the victory on his first match point as Auger-Aliassime made his 23rd unforced error by hitting the net.

This victory was a significant display of strength from Alcaraz, who has not won a title since his remarkable triumph over Novak Djokovic at the All England Club last year.

After exiting the Australian Open in the quarter-finals and losing in the semi-finals in Buenos Aires last month, Alcaraz suffered an ankle sprain and retired from his opening match in Rio de Janeiro.

"I played at a very high level of tennis, much better than in the first round," the Spaniard acknowledged.

Alcaraz may still be feeling the effects of the ankle injury, which has limited his match play in 2024.

"My confidence has taken a bit of a hit, I've been struggling in practice every day," he admitted. "I'm trying to maintain as much confidence as I can."

In other matches, fifth seed Andrey Rublev was defeated 6-4, 6-4 by up-and-coming Czech player Jiri Lehecka.

Alex de Minaur, seeded 10th, delivered a strong performance against Dubai finalist Alexander Bublik, winning 7-5, 6-0. The Australian will now face sixth seed Alexander Zverev, who defeated Tallon Griekspoor 7-6(7), 6-3.

Greek 11th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas secured a victory over home crowd favorite Frances Tiafoe with a 6-3, 6-3 win. Tiafoe had reached the quarterfinals in California a year ago.

In WTA action, Iga Swiatek avenged a January defeat by easily defeating Czech player Linda Noskova 6-4, 6-0 to advance to the fourth round. Swiatek, the top seed from Poland, was upset by the 29th-ranked challenger in the third round of the Australian Open.

On Sunday, world number one Swiatek quickly recovered after being broken early by the 19-year-old, leveling the match at 4-all and dominating the rest of the third-round match.

Swiatek will face Kazakh player Yulia Putintseva, who defeated Madison Keys 6-4, 6-1, in the next round.

The athlete mentioned that she took a valuable lesson from her defeat to Noskova in Melbourne. She emphasized the importance of focusing on playing against Linda rather than dwelling on her errors.

Her motivation was to enhance her performance by learning from her mistakes and refining certain aspects of her game.

Germany's Angelique Kerber, a three-time Grand Slam champion, secured a victory as she continued her comeback following last year's maternity break.

The 36-year-old triumphed over Veronika Kudermetova with a score of 6-4, 7-5. In the next round, she will compete against former world number one Caroline Wozniacki, who is also making a comeback after becoming a mother. Wozniacki progressed to the next round by defeating Katie Volynets 6-2, 4-6, 6-0.