Carlos Alcaraz continued to maintain impressive form when defeating Grigor Dimitrov with a score of 6-2, 6-3 in the second round of Indian Wells Masters held on the morning of March 8 (Vietnam time). The Spanish player showed superiority in the baseline balls and controlled the match quite well despite having to play in strong wind conditions in the California desert.
This victory helps Alcaraz extend his consecutive winning streak to 13, after he previously won the Australian Open and won another ATP 500 title in Doha.
After the match, Alcaraz said that windy playing conditions made the match more difficult, especially when the opponent had a strong attacking style. However, the 22-year-old player said that he had adapted well to control the game.
The match lasted 66 minutes, with Alcaraz showing confidence with powerful and accurate forehands. He also appeared comfortable playing at Indian Wells - a tournament that he said always brings a special feeling.
With this result, Alcaraz increased his head-to-head record with Dimitrov to 5 wins and 2 losses. In the third round, world No. 1 will face 26th seed Arthur Rinderknech. The French player advances after his opponent Juan Manuel Cerundolo had to withdraw due to a left leg injury.
Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic also qualified for the third round but went through a more difficult match. The Serbian player lost the first set to Kamil Majchrzak before making a comeback win 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 after 2 hours and 12 minutes of play.
This is Djokovic's first match since the defeat to Alcaraz in the Australian Open final. In strong wind conditions, the 38-year-old tennis player had difficulty finding rhythm in the first set. However, he gradually adjusted his playing style and increased stability in the final balls to reverse the situation.
Djokovic assesses Indian Wells as always a challenging tournament, especially in the early stages when weather conditions make ball control difficult.
The Serbian tennis player currently holds the record of 5 Indian Wells Masters championships with Roger Federer. However, he has not won a title at this tournament since 2016 and has not reached the fourth round since 2017.
At the age of 38, Djokovic became the second oldest male tennis player to reach the third round at Indian Wells, after Ivo Karlovic - who did this at the age of 40 in 2019.
Djokovic's next opponent in the third round will be Aleksandar Kovacevic.
