Almost a year ago, a cheeky Carlos Alcaraz, less known to the general public at the time, overcame another barrier on his way to becoming a tennis elite: he reached the semifinals of Indian Wells, the first time he had gone so far in a Masters 1,000, in the considered fifth Grand Slam. In front of him, a Rafa Nadal awaited him who had swept him in the only precedent between the two, in 2021 in Madrid. However, at the Tennis Garden everything changed. After more than three hours of battle against one of his idols, in a very even match marked by strong wind, the Murcian ended up giving in to the Balearic Islands, limping in the last few games due to a rib fracture.
The man from El Palmar succumbed, but his name settled in the imagination of all racket sport fans, who in the following months watched in astonishment as the new Spanish phenomenon won in Miami, lifted the Godó Trophy in Barcelona, ??prevailed in Madrid and he culminated his meteoric irruption in September with his first big one, the US Open. His success at Flushing Meadows also earned him the youngest World No. 1 in history, at just 19 years old. The physical problems he suffered earlier this year prevented him from defending the throne, now in the hands of Novak Djokovic, but he could return to the top of the ranking next week if he is victorious in a new edition of the Indian Wells tournament, where it all started. .
For the second consecutive year, Djokovic will not compete in the Californian desert for not having been vaccinated against covid, an essential requirement to enter the United States. The Serbian, who will not lose points at the Tennis Garden due to his absence in 2022, leads the ATP ranking with a 380-point margin over Alcaraz, number 2 in the ranking. The calculations for the Murcian are simple: only if he lifts the champion’s trophy will he be number one again, a recognition he lost when Djokovic won his tenth Australian Open on January 29.
Juan Carlos Ferrero’s pupil returned to competition this season by winning the Buenos Aires tournament and looked set to repeat the title in Rio de Janeiro until a grade 1 hamstring strain hampered his fitness in the final lost to Cameron Norrie . The muscular problem caused him to cancel the appointment in Acapulco. Installed in Los Angeles, Alcaraz has focused his training sessions in recent days on recovering sensations in his battered right leg with his trusted physiotherapist, Juanjo Moreno. In principle, he will arrive in good condition, although doubts will only be cleared when the number 1 seed connects his powerful right hand in his debut in Indian Wells against the winner of the duel between Thanasi Kokkinakis and Brandon Holt.
Without Nadal and Djokovic in the draw, Hubert, Hurkacz, Jannik Sinner, Tommy Paul, Félix Auger-Aliassime, Holger Rune and current title holder Taylor Fritz are the Murcian’s main threats on his possible path to the semifinals, while in the In the end you could find, among others, Stéfanos Tsitsipás, Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev or Casper Ruud. If he achieved his first title in Indian Wells and therefore took number 1 again, Alcaraz would have a very difficult time maintaining his reign in the next tournament, a Miami Masters where he must defend 1,000 points as current champion.
