Carlos Alcaraz emulates incredible Rafael Nadal & Novak Djokovic records following successful Indian Wells title defense

Carlos Alcaraz successfully defended his title at the BNP Paribas Open, becoming the first male player since Novak Djokovic to do so. He also became the second ATP player after Rafael Nadal to win five or more Masters 1000 titles before turning 21.

In the repeat of last year's Indian Wells final, Alcaraz faced Medvedev in the title contest in Palm Springs on March 17. Medvedev took an early 3-0 lead in the first set, only for Alcaraz to restore parity and eventually take the set via a tiebreaker. The Spaniard then ran away with the contest in the second set to win the match, 7-6 (5), 6-1 in an hour and 42 minutes.

This is Carlos Alcaraz's fifth Masters 1000 title before he turns 21 in May. His other 1000-level triumphs came at the 2022 Miami Open, 2022 Madrid Open, 2023 Indian Wells Open, and 2023 Madrid Open. Alcaraz is the second player to win at least five 1000-level titles before turning 21, after fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal.

Nadal's record in this department is even more astounding, as he won nine Masters 1000 titles before turning 21 in June 2007. The 22-time Grand Slam champion emerged triumphant at the 2005 Monte Carlo Masters, 2005 Italian Open, 2005 Canadian Open, 2005 Madrid Open, 2006 Monte Carlo Masters, 2006 Italian Open, 2007 Indian Wells Masters, 2007 Monte Carlo Masters, and 2007 Italian Open.

Moreover, Carlos Alcaraz is the first man to defend the Indian Wells title in eight years. Novak Djokovic was the last man to achieve this milestone, holding the trophy in the California desert for three years in a row—2014, 2015, and 2016. The Serb is a five-time champion at Indian Wells.

Carlos Alcaraz ends eight-month trophy drought with Indian Wells title defense

Carlos Alcaraz

The title in Indian Wells has helped Carlos Alcaraz return to the winner's circle after eight months. Before the BNP Paribas Open, the young Spaniard's last title win came at the Wimbledon Championships in July 2023 where he bettered Djokovic in London to lift his second Grand Slam title.

After London, he managed to reach only one final, at the Western & Southern Open, in 10 tournaments until Indian Wells. Alcaraz was under tremendous pressure at the 2024 BNP Paribas Open and in danger of losing his World No. 2 ranking.

However, he bettered Matteo Arnaldi, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Fabian Marozsan, Alexander Zverev, Jannik Sinner, and Daniil Medvedev to clinch the title. He would now head to Miami for the second 1000-level tournament of the Sunshine Double. Alcaraz reached the semifinal of the Miami Open last year.