17th March, 2022
Spanish teenage tennis sensation, Carlos Alcaraz is still red hot, weeks after winning his first ATP 500 in Rio.
The 18-year-old beat Gael Monfils 7-5 6-1.
On Wednesday in Indian Wells, Alcaraz became the second youngest men’s quarter-finalist, since 17-year-old Michael Chang in 1989.
Up next for him in his first Masters quarter-final is 12th seed Cameron Norrie, who beat Jenson Brooksby 6-4 6-2.
Elsewhere, Rafa Nadal toppled big-serving American Reilly Opelka 7-6(3) 7-6(5) to remain perfect on the year.
Unseeded Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic stunned world number six Matteo Berrettini 6-3 6-7(5) 6-4 in the fourth round of Indian Wells on Wednesday.
Nadal is now 18-0 to start the season and if he can win his fourth title in the California desert, he will move into a tie with Novak Djokovic for the most Masters 1000 titles with 37.
To do so, the 21-time Grand Slam champion will need to defeat another huge server in Australian Nick Kyrgios, who advanced by walkover after Italian Jannik Sinner withdrew from the tournament due to illness.
Nadal holds a 5-3 lead over Kyrgios in their previous meetings.
Earlier in the day Kecmanovic absorbed Berrettini’s power serve in the first set, converting on a break point chance in the fourth game, as a frustrated Berrettini won just eight return points.
But Kecmanovic, 22, was unable to close out the match as a break point opportunity slipped through his fingers late in the second set, in which Berrettini, who reached his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon last year, struck 21 winners and won a tense tiebreak to level.
Berrettini saved two breaks in the eighth game in a tightly fought final set to stay alive but Kecmanovic pounced to break the Italian’s serve to love in the final game.
He will next play Taylor Fritz who outlasted Australian Alex de Minaur 3-6 6-4 7-6(5). A break down in the third, it was the second consecutive match Fritz won in a third-set tiebreaker.
Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov beat American John Isner 6-3 7-6(6) and will face Andrey Rublev in the quarters after the Russian won a tight opening set before easing past Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(5) 6-4.