No. 2 seed Jannik Sinner of Italy needed just 66 minutes to show No. 25 seed Learner Tien the door, prevailing 6-1, 6-2 in the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open on Thursday in Indian Wells, Calif.
Sinner set up a semifinal date with No. 4 seed Alexander Zverev of Germany, who bounced No. 30 seed Arthur Fils of France 6-2, 6-3.
No. 1 seed Carlos Alcaraz of Spain took down British 27th seed Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-4 in an evening match, booking a semifinal against 11th-seeded Daniil Medvedev. The Russian eliminated No. 14 Jack Draper of Great Britain, the defending champion, 6-1, 7-5.
Sinner fired 10 aces by Tien and benefited from the 20-year-old’s five double faults. Sinner dropped just five points on his first serve and went 4-for-4 on saving break points.
Tien, a California native, was the only American man to make the final eight at Indian Wells. It was Tien’s first quarterfinal at an ATP 1000 event, six weeks removed from his run to the Australian Open quarters.
“He is a very talented player,” Sinner said of Tien. “He will be here many times, but I’m happy how I reacted. I feel like he was very aggressive, especially in the beginning, so I tried to hold back. An important match for me of course.”
Sinner, who’s won four Grand Slams since the start of 2024, is vying for his first Indian Wells title.
Standing in his way next is Zverev, who flashed a great return game against Fils, winning the point on close to half of Fils’ serves (33 of 71, 46.5%). Zverev saved all three break points he faced.
The German has now reached the semifinals at least once at all nine current ATP 1000 tournaments.
“It’s very special to be one of five players in history to ever do it,” Zverev said. “For sure, yeah, it’s something that I’m very proud of.”
Alcaraz’s sizeable edge in winners, 27-15, more than offsetting his slightly higher total than Norrie in unforced errors, 26-23.
The last time the players met, Norrie scored an upset in Paris last fall, though Alcaraz now hold a 6-3 career edge.
“I struggle a lot with his style,” Alcaraz said. “Every time I play against him, it’s always really tough for me. It’s a little bit confusing with his style, his (heavy) topspin forehand, super high. And then the backhand, really flat and really low.
“Sometimes it’s tricky to play against him. I’m finding the right shot. I played well. I played solid. I played aggressive when I could. I’m happy to play this level.”
Medvedev blitzed Draper in the first set, winning the first five games. The second set was tighter, with Medvedev getting the lone break in the final game.
“The first set was unreal, I couldn’t miss a ball,” Medvedev said in his on-court interview. “It was an unbelievable level. Second set, he tried to give everything he had, and he had an opportunity. … In general, I’m super happy with the way I’m playing now and I’m looking forward.”
–Field Level Media
