Alcaraz advances, Swiatek sets up semis showdown with Andreeva

Two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz fought off determined challenger Francisco Cerundolo 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) on Thursday to reach the semi-finals of the Indian Wells ATP Masters.

Defending champion Iga Swiatek beat Zheng Qinwen 6-3, 6-3 on Thursday, avenging her Olympics semi-final loss to the Paris Games gold medallist to reach the last four at Indian Wells.

The world number two from Poland will get a chance to avenge another upset loss in a semi-final clash with Mirra Andreeva — the 17-year-old Russian who stunned her in the quarter-finals at Dubai last month on the way to becoming the youngest-ever WTA 1000 champion.

The top half of the draw will feature another semi-final grudge match as world number one Aryna Sabalenka takes on Australian Open champion Madison Keys — who denied Sabalenka’s bid for a third straight title in Melbourne.

On another cold, blustery night in the California desert, Alcaraz battled back from 1-4 down in the second set, coming up with a break and two love service holds to force the tiebreaker as he kept his bid to join Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic as the only men to win three straight Indian Wells titles on track.

Alcaraz had to save break points in each of his first three service games. But after an emphatic hold for 4-3 he gained the first break of the contest with a deft volley and just like that he was serving for the first set.

After sliding to pop a drop volley winner over the net for set point Alcaraz drilled a deep forehand that Cerundolo could barely get a racquet on.

But it was Cerundolo who broke first in the second, finally converting his ninth break point of the match then holding for 4-1.

But he couldn’t hold off the world number three, who raced to a 5-2 lead in the tiebreaker on the way to victory.

“It was really difficult for me to start the match,” said Alcaraz, who looked less comfortable in the windy weather than he did just a day before.

Alcaraz next faces Britain’s Jack Draper, who reached his first Masters 1000 semi-final with a 6-4, 7-5 victory over American Ben Shelton.

Draper took the opening set with one break of serve then rallied from 0-3 down in a second-set slug-fest.

Shelton’s 32 unforced errors included five double-faults — including one to hand Draper a break for 6-5 in the second.

Russian Daniil Medvedev, runner-up to Alcaraz each of the past two years, rallied from a break down in a wild, wind-blown final set to beat Arthur Fils 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (9/7).

The world number six booked a semi-final meeting with Denmark’s Holger Rune, a 5-7, 6-0, 6-3 winner over Tallon Griekspoor.

Swiatek admitted she was pleased to avenge her Olympic defeat — a heartbreaking loss on the Philippe Chatrier court where the Polish star has won four French Open titles.

“It’s not nice to lose to anybody, so for sure you want to have a little, like revenge, but it’s nothing personal,” Swiatek said.

She can settle another score against Andreeva, who kept her bid for another prestigious title on track with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Ukrainian veteran Elina Svitolina.

Top-seeded Sabalenka beat Liudmila Samsonova 6-2, 6-3 to set up a meeting with Keys, who eased past former world number four Belinda Bencic 6-1, 6-1.

As in her previous match, Sabalenka went down a quick break. But she won the next nine games to take a 6-2, 3-1 lead.

Samsonova pulled back a break as she leveled the second set at 3-3, but Sabalenka strung together another three games for the victory, lunging for a backhand passing winner on her first match point.

“I’m really excited,” Sabalenka said, adding that the chance to face Keys again served as “motivation to get back that revenge”.

“She played great there. I didn’t play my best and I’m really happy that tomorrow I will have opportunity to get this revenge back.”

Keys, coming off a tough three-set win over Donna Vekic, fired 30 winners to put away Bencic in just 64 minutes.

Keys is now riding a 16-match winning streak as she tries to become the first American woman to lift the title in the California desert since Serena Williams in 2001.