Indian Wells: Alcaraz beats Medvedev, win back to back titles

Carlos Alcaraz surged past World No. 4 Daniil Medvedev 7-6(5), 6-1 on Sunday to retain the BNP Paribas Open title. It is the 20-year-old’s first title since ohe triumphed at Wimbledon last year.

The 20-year-old defeated two of the Top 4 players in the world over the final weekend to earn his fifth ATP Masters 1000 title and 13th tour-level crown overall.

Alcaraz entered the Indian Wells fortnight with a 6-3 record on the season and during his most recent outing, in Rio de Janeiro, he suffered an injury scare to his ankle, forcing him to retire. But the No. 2 player in the PIF ATP Rankings emerged from a star-studded field in the California desert with the trophy and restored confidence.

“Winning this tournament means a lot to me because the week before it began, I had a lot of doubts about my ankle,” Alcaraz said in his on-court interview. “I remember my first practice here was just 30 minutes with no movement and probably the first practice with really good tennis players was really tough for me, because I thought I was not going to play my best.

”I was not feeling well with my ankle, so a lot of doubts for me. But once I stepped on the court, the first round, I started to feel better.”

Alcaraz and Medvedev also met in the Indian Wells final one year ago, when the former won 6-3, 6-2. The two-time Indian Wells champion took a 5-3 lead in their Lexus ATP Head2Head rivalry after a championship performance in which he hit 19 forehand winners compared to 11 total winners for his opponent.