Medvedev beats Alkaraz for first loss of the year, heading to Indian Wells final against Sinner

INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — Daniil Medvedev suffered his first loss of the year on Saturday when he defeated top-seeded Carlos Alcaraz, 6-3, 7-6 (3), to advance to the Indian Wells final.

Medvedev, the 11th seed from Russia, will face Yannick Sinner, the second seed from Italy. Sinner defeated Alexander Zverev 6-2, 6-4.

Alcaraz has won 16 consecutive matches this year, including titles at the Australian Open and Qatar Open. But Medvedev ended the possibility of a final between Alkaraz and Sinner. Medvedev has failed in his past four matches against Alcaraz, including the 2024 Indian Wells final. This is the first time Medvedev has defeated him since the 2023 US Open semifinals.

Sinner quickly overcame Zverev, defeating him in 1 hour and 23 minutes. Sinner had six aces against fourth seed Zverev.

Zverev won the first eight points on serve. But Sinner broke Zverev in the fifth and seventh games to seal the first set. Sinner now leads the series against Zverev 7-4.

In the women’s doubles final, Taylor Townsend/Katrina Siniakova defeated Anna Danilina/Aleksandar Krunic 7-6 (4), 6-4. The win was Townsend’s first in Indian Wells and Siniakova’s second. Siniakova also won the 2023 title with long-time partner Barbora Krejcikova.

Tosende and Siniakova defeated Danilina and Krunic in 94 minutes, thanks in large part to scoring 80 percent of their first-serve points and 82 percent of their second-serve points.