Carlos Alcaraz has really impressed everyone at Indian Wells so far. Not even the decision of the tournament organizers to change surface after 25 years has hurt him, as the Spanish ace reached the semifinals without losing a single set.
The former world No.1 – who hopes to win this tournament for the third year in a row by equaling Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic – defeated Francisco Cerundolo in the quarterfinals in a tougher match than expected.
The Argentine player showed that he liked these particularly slow conditions and put Carlitos in trouble in both sets, but the 4-time Grand Slam champion made the difference in the decisive moments and avoided trouble.
The 21-year-old from Murcia will have to further raise his level against Jack Draper in the semifinals, because the young Briton is certainly one of the players who have improved the most in recent times.
After reaching the semifinals at the 2024 US Open, Jack continued to work very hard and – despite an injury affecting him during the pre-season – he started 2025 in a very bright way.
Draper already defeated Alcaraz at the Queen’s Club last year, but the last clash between these two players was during the 2025 Australian Open. The British ace was not in top condition and had been forced to retire to avoid worsening his situation.
Alcaraz wants to win many titles
According to top analyst Benoit Maylin on the latest edition of the show ‘Sans Filet’, Carlos will be the man to beat in all tournaments until Roland Garros.
“Alcaraz loves this very slow condition and with high rebounds, because it enhances his game” – explained Maylin.
“The surface of Indian Wells is quite similar to red clay, in fact the ball has an even greater bounce than in certain tournaments on red clay.
I think Carlitos can win Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid, Rome and Paris, although these bounce is less in these last tournaments. He can imitate the exploits of his compatriot Rafael Nadal,” he added.