Carlos Alcaraz feels 'at home' at Indian Wells with win over Francisco Cerúndolo
Carlos Alcaraz is so comfortable and at home in Indian Wells that after Thursday’s win he playfully teased the home crowd by writing with a marker on the glass of the television camera filming the match, “Should I buy a house here?”
A day earlier, a reporter asked the Spanish tennis star if he felt unbeatable on these hardcourts at the BNP Paribas Open. Alcaraz didn’t reject the notion.
On Thursday, he showed why that may be true — at least during this unfathomable run he’s having.
With a 6-3, 7-6(4) win over Francisco Cerúndolo of Argentina, Alcaraz has now won 16 consecutive matches here and is now into the semifinals at Indian Wells for the fourth consecutive year. He's two wins from a third consecutive title at Indian Wells.
"Off the court, I feel at home here," Alcaraz said on the court after the match. "On the court, I feel at home as well."
Alcaraz will now face 23-year-old Jack Draper of Great Britain in Saturday's semifinals.
In one of the more entertaining matches of the tournament, in front of more than 10,000 on Stadium Court, Cerúndolo played at an extremely high level. Alcaraz just played better.
The 21-year-old used his blazing speed to race all over the court, chasing down balls that no player would reasonably expect to return. It made for a wildly amusing match, with Cerúndolo occasionally matching Alcaraz, shot-for-shot.
Two of the more athletic players on the ATP Tour put on a show on Stadium Court for the fans, who braved chilly temperatures and swirling wind at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
"Fans are certainly getting their money's worth with this one," commentator Paul Annacone said on the Tennis Channel broadcast.
Alcaraz, in particular, made some jaw-dropping shots that brought a roar from the crowd. Even for Alcaraz, who has not lost on these courts since 2022, the match was a stunning display of his greatness.
“It’s like a magic wand in that young man’s hand," Annacone said, "to mix the touch with the power at the right moment.”
Alcaraz went up a break in the first set and held serve, saving all six break points he faced in the set. It was as if a 20-year veteran of the craft was playing.
In the second set, Alcaraz went up a break before Cerúndolo finally converted a break point to even the score. The two each held serve from there to send the set to a tiebreak.
In the tiebreak, Alcaraz jumped out to a 3-1 lead, then to 4-2 and then to 5-2.
Cerúndolo scored the next two points to make it 5-4, but Alcaraz scored to make it 6-4 and then Cerúndolo buried the ball into the net on the next point to give Alcaraz the win.
Alcaraz is now just the third player to make four consecutive semifinal appearances at Indian Wells, following Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer. Those three are also the only men to win 16 consecutive matches at this event, and Alcaraz is seeking to join Djokovic and Federer as the only ones to win the title here three consecutive times.
He'll go for 17 consecutive wins here Saturday, for a chance to play in another final at a place that has come to feel like home.
"I'm lucky enough to bring family with me to tournaments, but I think tennis is a lonely sport," Alcaraz said. "So sometimes when you have or you feel peaceful in the place you're going, you feel great.
"So that's this case here. I feel peace. Here is peaceful. So I just feel great that way with the people that I have around.
"So, that's why it makes this place really beautiful to me, and I think that's why I show my best tennis here."
[This story has been updated to add new information.]
Andrew John covers the BNP Paribas Open for The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Carlos Alcaraz 'at home' at Indian Wells in win over Francisco Cerúndolo
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