Indian Wells Tennis Men's Semifinals 2022 Results, Updated Finals Schedule
The finals of the BNP Paribas Open are set after Saturday's action in Indian Wells.
In the men's semifinals, Rafael Nadal outlasted Carlos Alcaraz 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in a thriller, and Taylor Fritz ended Andrey Rublev's 13-match win streak with a 7-5, 6-4 victory.
The 18-year-old Alcaraz, who is the second-youngest semifinalist in tournament history, came out firing and opened up a 2-0 lead after saving five break points in the second game. But it would take much more than that to put Nadal away.
The 35-year-old won four straight games before Alcaraz fought back to tie things up. Nadal wouldn't be denied and won the next two points to close out the first set. In all, Nadal forced Alcaraz into 17 break points and converted three of them.
The second set was a battle for both players as they traded points and also had to deal with the increasingly windy conditions. But the youngster was able to take control after converting another break point after a marathon 19-minute game. On his next service game, Alcaraz delivered to force a deciding third set.
The third set saw much of the same as both players held serve through the first seven games. But Nadal converted a crucial break on the ensuing point to take a 5-3 advantage. Serving for match point, Nadal left no doubt and closed out the set in four serves.
Nadal is going for his fourth championship in the desert. With the win, he remains undefeated in singles competition this season at 20-0.
For Fritz, who is ranked No. 20 in the world, it's the first elite Masters 1000 final as he is vying for the second ATP title of his career. The California native was visibly emotional in front of his home crowd after becoming the first American to advance to the final in the BNP Paribas Open since John Isner in 2012. He will attempt to become the first American winner since Andre Agassi in 2001.
Fritz looked to be cruising early when he jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first set. But Rublev, who is ranked No. 7 in the world, gained some momentum when he fought off three break points to win a marathon game. The 24-year-old took a 5-2 advantage, but Rublev refused to go down easily and rattled off three straight points.
Fritz eventually closed out the set in the 12th game. Rublev was notably frustrated after the loss, punching his racquet several times and opening up cuts on his knuckles that led to a medical timeout.
In the second set, the two of them traded points back and forth before a mistake by Rublev on an easy forehand volley that went long gifted Fritz the opportunity at match point. Fritz delivered by crushing a service return winner.
"Today I definitely played my best match of the tournament so far. I was so much more aggressive from the ground and so much more solid [with] my groundstrokes, whereas [in] other matches I was maybe playing a bit safer," Fritz said after the match. "I really tried to take it to him and impose my game today. I did it well, so that helped a lot."
Fritz and Nadal will clash on Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. In the women's final at 4 p.m. ET, world No. 4 Iga Swiatek will go up against No. 6 Maria Sakkari.
