A generational clash of Spain’s best two ATP players is set for Saturday in tennis paradise. 35-year-old Rafael Nadal faces 18-year-old standout Carlos Alcaraz, who has looked up to Nadal from a very young age. Will Rafa reassert his standing as Spain’s top player by extending his 2022 undefeated streak to 20-0? Or will the surging teenager upset the all-time great, in what one day could be looked back on a passing-of-the-torch moment?
Saturday’s other ATP singles semifinal sees Andrey Rublev, who is into his third semifinal at US Masters 1000 events within the past year, take on American Taylor Fritz, who is into his second consecutive semifinal at Indian Wells. And both the men’s and women’s doubles champions will be decided.
Andrey Rublev (7) vs. Taylor Fritz (20) – Not Before 1:00pm on Stadium 1
Their head-to-head is even at 2-2, which consists of two matches in 2018 and two last year. They first met four years ago at this event, with Fritz prevailing in straight sets. Taylor also took their most recent clash in straights, this past November in Bercy. The 24-year-old American is 12-4 on the year, and achieved a significant milestone by advancing to the second week of a Major for the first time in Melbourne. He’s played three consecutive three-setters this week, with two of those victories decided by a third-set tiebreak. Rublev is an outstanding 18-2 in 2022. He’s currently on a 13-match win streak, coming off back-to-back titles in Marseille and Dubai. He’s reached this semifinal much more comfortably than Fritz, without dropping a set. Andrey’s superior resume, and the momentum he carries into this match, make him the favorite. But based on their history, as well as how Taylor has lifted his game in front of the American audience in his home state of California, Fritz has a significant chance to pull off the upset.
Rafael Nadal (4) vs. Carlos Alcaraz (19) – Following the First Semifinal on Stadium 1
They have met once before, last year at Spain’s biggest event, the Madrid Masters. On that day, Nadal easily defeated of Alcaraz, who was a wild card ranked 120th in the world. But Carlos has progressed rapidly since that time. Last summer, he captured his first ATP title in Umag, and made a scintillating run to the US Open quarterfinals, which included an upset of Stefanos Tsitsipas in a fifth-set tiebreak. Alcaraz has now won 17 of his last 18 matches, with two further titles claimed (NextGen Finals, Rio). And he hasn’t dropped a set in his last seven matches. At the end of Carlos’ victory over defending champion Cam Norrie in the quarterfinals, Tennis Channel’s Jim Courier said it’s hard to find a weakness in the Alcaraz game. And as Norrie himself later admitted, Alcaraz is one of the speediest players in the world, with amazing court coverage. So how will the 18-year-old perform 10 months later in a rematch against his idol? Nadal hasn’t been at his best this fortnight, yet he’s grinded and found ways to win regardless. But I think Alcaraz is ready for this moment. And considering Rafa’s ongoing left foot issues, it feels like an upset is entirely possible.
Other Notable Matches on Saturday:
Asia Muhammad and Ena Shibahara (7) vs. Yifan Xu and Zhaoxuan Yang – As per the WTA, Muhammad has now won 27 straight matches between singles and doubles at all levels. Her and Shibahara took out two of the top five seeds to reach this final. Xu and Yang narrowly avoided elimination in the quarterfinals, defeating Caroline Dolehide and Storm Sanders 11-9 in a deciding 10-point tiebreak.
Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin (PR) vs. John Isner and Jack Sock (WC) – The Americans won this event back in 2018. They have not only beat the top seeds this fortnight, but also teams including Nick Kyrgios, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Sascha Zverev. This is Gonzalez and Roger-Vasseilin’s first tournament as a team. They upset the second seeds in the semifinals, and also overcame teams which included Denis Shapovalov and Andrey Rublev.
Saturday’s full Order of Play is here.
