The quarterfinals of the Indian Wells tournament have arrived. Daniil Medvedev, Casper Ruud and Holger Rune, the latter in painful form, sealed their tickets to the penultimate round of the first Masters 1000 of the season on Wednesday.
The Dane, seeded number 7, came back from a set down and saved a match point to defeat 2022 champion Taylor Fritz 2-6, 7-6(2), 6-3.
Rune lost the first set in 32 minutes and found himself on the scoreboard when Fritz, winner in 2022, took a 5-4 lead and 40-30 in the nextbut the seventh-seeded Dane grabbed a crucial point before forcing a tiebreak.
The 20-year-old advanced in the contest at one set apiece and broke his opponent for the first time in the fourth game to take a 3-1 lead in the deciding set.
With Fritz down, Rune completed the comeback by closing out the match with his serve, finishing with a forehand winner. “It’s crazy. I know how to hold on and keep fighting, I’m trying to play better point by point and I was able to raise my level amazingly at the end of the second set, which meant everything for the match,” he said after the match.
“He controlled it in the first set and for a long time in the second as well, so I’m glad I was able to keep fighting. I still believe I will find my groove at some point. “I was on edge, but I managed to find it, which is good.”
His next opponent was Daniil Medvedev, who beat Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in doubles 6-4.. The Russian, world number four, defeated the Bulgarian, number 13, for the seventh time in the last ten times and will avenge the defeat the Bulgarian inflicted on him in the same tournament in 2021.
Medvedev, who lost against Dimitrov last time out, in Paris Bercy, will play in the quarterfinals against Rune, who came back to win 2-6, 7-6(2) and 6-3 against Fritz, the tournament champion this in 2022.
Italian Californian Luca Nardi’s dream is over, number 123 in the world and lucky loser, who succumbed to American Tommy Paul 6-4 and 6-3 after delivering a shock in the previous round by eliminating Serbian Novak Djokovic, number one in the world ranking.
Paul, number 17, will face Norwegian Casper Ruud in the quarterfinalsnumber 9, defeating Frenchman Gael Monfils 3-6, 7-6(3) and 6-4.
This Thursday is the time for Alcaraz, world number two, who will have a demanding date against German Alexander Zverev, his executioner in the last Australian Open.
Also playing will be Italian Jannik Sinner, number three, who will face Czech Jiri Lehecka. If Sinner goes further than Alcaraz in this tournament, he will take second place from the Spaniard in the ranking.
The Italian and the Iberian could meet in the semifinals.
Source: La Verdad
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