Category: Tennis

The most startling performances of recent months have involved revitalised tennis from Medvedev and Djokovic

In the uncertain early stages of his Indian Wells semi-final contest with Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev swiftly made his intentions clear. Having established a 3-1 lead, he chased down a trademark Alcaraz drop shot, then a lob, before slamming the door shut on the point by firing an ultra-flat inside-out backhand winner on to the edge of the line.

This was a statement point and it formed part of the most startling performance of the year so far. Few gave Medvedev a serious chance against Alcaraz, who had won their four previous meetings, conceding just one set. It took one of the best matches of Medvedev’s distinguished career to turn the tables on Alcaraz in only two sets.

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• Italian world No 2 clinches 7-6 (6), 7-6 (4) win in Californian desert

• Women’s No 1 Aryna Sabalenka snaps her losing streak in final

Jannik Sinner claimed his first title of the year with victory over Daniil Medvedev in Indian Wells, while Aryna Sabalenka snapped her losing streak against Elena Rybakina in a thrilling women’s final.

Four-time grand slam champion Sinner had had a slightly underwhelming start to the season by his stratospheric standards but he was peerless in the Californian desert, not dropping a set through the fortnight.

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• Spanish world No 1 falls to first defeat of tennis season

• Medvedev wins 6-3, 7-6(3) to set up final against Jannik Sinner

Carlos Alcaraz said he was finding it tough to constantly have a target on his back and was surprised by the level of performance from Daniil Medvedev after the Russian handed him his first defeat of the season at Indian Wells.

Medvedev’s 6-3, 7-6(3) victory over the world No 1 in the semi-finals ended the Spaniard’s 16-match winning run to start the season. World No 11 Medvedev will play Jannik Sinner in the final on Sunday.

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• British No 1’s title defence ends with 6-1, 7-5 loss in quarters

• Carlos Alcaraz beats Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-4 to reach last four

Jack Draper was controversially ruled to have caused a hindrance to opponent Daniil Medvedev as his Indian Wells title defence ended in the quarter-finals. The 24-year-old Briton, looking understandably weary from his exploits in beating Novak Djokovic less than 24 hours earlier, went down 6-1, 6-4 to the former world No 1.

The decisive moment came at 5-5 and 0-15 in the second set when umpire Aurelie Torte decided to award Medvedev a point following a video review after Draper had raised his arms at a disputed line call and was deemed to have distracted his opponent, with Medvedev going on to seal a crucial break.

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• British No 1 comes from behind in 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5) win

• Hard-fought win keeps Draper’s title defence on track

Jack Draper was “overwhelmed” after beating Novak Djokovic for the first time to reach the quarter-finals in Indian Wells and keep his title defence on track.

Playing only the second ATP tournament of his comeback after eight months out with an arm injury, Draper came through a gripping battle lasting more than two-and-a-half hours in a deciding tie-break to win 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5).

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• World No 1 wins 6-2, 6-4 against Japanese

• Australian qualifier Talia Gibson stuns Paolini

Aryna Sabalenka eased past Naomi Osaka 6-2, 6-4 to reach the Indian Wells quarter-finals while the fourth seed, Alexander Zverev, progressed to the last eight in the men’s event.

Sabalenka and Osaka, both four-time grand slam title winners, were meeting for the first time since 2018, when the Japanese won at the US Open en route to her maiden major title, but the world No 1’s power proved too much for one of her predecessors.

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• Russian loses to Katerina Siniakova in three sets

• Teenager throws racket on several occasions

Mirra Andreeva’s Indian Wells title defense met a bad-tempered end on Monday as Katerina Siniakova stunned the Russian teenager 4-6, 7-6, 6-3.

The 18-year-old opened her bid to retain her crown with a dominant 6-0, 6-0 demolition of Solana Sierra. But she was in trouble early and often against Siniakova, the world No 44, in a rollercoaster contest that ended with a shot from the Czech that hit the net cord and dribbled over in one last frustrating moment.

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• Draper defeats Argentine 6-1, 7-5 in third round

• Cameron Norrie sees off Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-4

Jack Draper continued his impressive comeback from an arm injury by beating Francisco Cerundolo to set up a last-16 clash with Novak Djokovic at Indian Wells.

Draper rode his luck at the end of the second set to clinch a 6-1, 7-5 win and set up his first meeting with Djokovic since he took the first set off the defending champion on his Wimbledon debut in 2021.

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• American wins 6-1, 6-1

• Aryna Sabalenka sets up Naomi Osaka meeting

Emma Raducanu suffered a heavy defeat in just 52 minutes to Amanda Anisimova in the third round at Indian Wells. The British No 1 was well below par in a 6-1 6-1 loss to the American world No 6.

Raducanu, seeded 25, may have been struggling with a fitness issue as she repeatedly refused to chase down drop shots. The 23-year-old’s first serve misfired badly and she hit just two winners to her opponent’s 21.

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• Kartal beats No 20 seed Emma Navarro 6-1, 3-6, 7-6

• British men’s No 1 defeats Bautista Agut 3-6, 6-3, 6-2

Jack Draper came from behind to beat Roberto Bautista Agut 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 to start his title defence in Indian Wells, and his success was followed by a superb performance in the women’s event from Sonay Kartal, as the British No 2 twice broke back to stay in the match and beat the No 20 seed, Emma Navarro, 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (2).

Kartal, the world No 54, raced through the first set but needed a medical time out and Navarro levelled the match in the second. The Briton was serving first in the final set but failed to put her opponent under much pressure and was broken in the ninth game by the American. The defiant Kartal broke back but could not hold her serve next up, meaning the world No 25 would serve for the match again at 6-5. Kartal refused to go down without a fight, saved a match point, broke back and then dropped just two points in the tie-break.

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• British No 1 snaps losing streak with 6-1, 6-3 victory

• Former coach Mark Petchey returns to her corner

Emma Raducanu enjoyed a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Anastasia Zakharova to reach the last 32 in Indian Wells.

Raducanu arrived at the WTA 1000 tournament on a three-match losing streak and eager to rediscover form after her January split from coach Francisco Roig.

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• British No 1 being aided by Mark Petchey at Indian Wells

• ‘I am definitely going to tap into a few people’

Emma Raducanu says she is determined to wrest back control of her “natural” tennis style, with the British No 1 eager not to be bound by the diktats of a single coach.

“I want to come back to my natural way of playing. That takes time to relearn because that’s something that has been coached out of me a little bit,” Raducanu told BBC Sport. “I have had a lot of people telling me what to do, how to play, and it hasn’t necessarily fit. I don’t necessarily want to have one coach in the role because anyone I bring in is straight away going to be scrutinised – even if it’s a trial.

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• Medvedev and Rublev both miss pre-event exhibition

• Challenger event in Dubai cancelled over security alert

The Russian tennis players Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev did not arrive at Indian Wells in time to participate in Tuesday night’s southern California exhibition event after they were among those affected by travel disruptions caused by the war on Iran.

The US and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran over the weekend and the conflict has led to airspace closures and widespread flight cancellations across parts of the Gulf, disrupting a key transit hub.

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In Japan to announce her switch to Uniqlo, the British No 1 says frustrations only fuel the fire as she looks to Indian Wells and beyond

Emma Raducanu has no immediate plans to appoint a new coach as she attempts to kickstart a frustrating season in the US next month. The British No 1 will play at Indian Wells and in the Miami Open in March without a full-time replacement for Francisco Roig – her ninth coach since she turned professional – with whom she parted company after her second-round exit at the Australian Open in January.

“Right now I wouldn’t say I’m actively looking for a coach,” Raducanu says in Tokyo, where on Tuesday she was unveiled as a global brand ambassador for the Japanese clothes retailer Uniqlo after ending her association with Nike.

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• British No 1 beaten 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 by Croatia’s Antonia Ruzic

• World No 67 reels off six games in a row to claim victory

Emma Raducanu lost the final six games in a 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 defeat against Antonia Ruzic in the opening round at the Dubai Tennis Championships.

The British No 1, whose original opponent Elisabetta Cocciaretto withdrew at late notice because of fatigue, fought back in the second set to level the match and led 2-0 in the decider before losing all momentum.

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