Luca Nardi scored the biggest win of his young tennis career to date, as he stunned world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the Round of 32 on Monday.
The 20-year-old Italian came into the 2024 Indian Wells Masters as a lucky loser, and now he is on his way to the next round, looking to cause a few more upsets along the way.
With Djokovic out, this means that Carlos Alcaraz’s Indian Wells Masters 2024 odds of successfully defending his title look better than ever, but Jannik Sinner is another player to watch out for since he is arguably the most in-form ATP player in this tournament.
Learn more about the latest tennis action in California, as SBOTOP is here to bring you the top Indian Wells Masters 2024 updates.
Nardi still couldn’t believe he beat Djokovic
Because he is No. 123 in the ATP rankings, Luca Nardi is the lowest-ranked player to defeat Novak Djokovic at an ATP Masters 1000 or Grand Slam game. He is also the fourth-lowest-ranked player to beat a reigning World No. 1 at an ATP Masters 1000 event.
After two hard-fought qualifying matches, Nardi entered the second round by outlasting Zhang Zhizhen in the Round of 64. And his momentum carried over in the first set against Novak Djokovic, as Nardi was aggressive and showed no fear from the get-go.
Nardi took the first set, but Djokovic claimed the second. And it was a toss-up in the final set, as both players traded punches.
As Nardi connected one powerful swing after another, Djokovic fought off three break points for 1-1. The Serb did all he could to escape 0/40 at 2-3, but Nardi came back out of 0/30 on his own serve for the decisive break, capped off by his sixth ace of the match to end Djokovic’s 11-match win streak at Masters events and his chase for a record sixth Indian Wells Masters title.
Coincidentally, Djokovic’s last two defeats have come against young Italians, with Nardi following Jannik Sinner’s victory against the Serb in the Australian Open semi-finals. Sinner went on to win his first Grand Slam in Melbourne after that.
With the 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win against Djokovic, Nardi has moved up 27 places this week to No. 96 in the ATP Live Rankings, so when he meets Tommy Paul next, he’ll be making his Top 100 debut.
“I think that before this night, no one knew me,” said Nardi after the match. “I hope that the crowd enjoyed the game. I’m super happy with this one.”
“I don’t know how I held my nerve (against Djokovic). I think it is a miracle because I am a 20-year-old guy, 100 in the world, and beating Novak. It’s crazy,” he added.
Alcaraz achieves personal milestone in the second round
With his 6-3, 6-3 victory over Fabian Marozsan on Tuesday, Carlos Alcaraz has reached his 50th career win at the ATP Masters 1000 level.
Alcaraz started off on a lackluster note when he was down 2-3 in the opening set, but the World No. 2 won four straight games to eventually win the set.
The 20-year-old didn’t let up against the World No. 58, as when he was up 4-2 in the second set, Alcaraz fired a 105-mph forehand winner in the seventh game that drew oohs and ahhs from the crowd to erase Marozsan’s two break points.
In the one-hour, 15-minute victory, Alcaraz won 62-per cent of his second serve return points. He now has a 9-3 record so far this season, but more importantly, Alcaraz has finally exacted revenge on Marozsan, who defeated him in the 2023 Italian Open Round of 16.
The Spaniard is set to meet Alexander Zverev, who is fresh from winning against Alex de Minaur, in the next round. Zverev is 5-3 against Alcaraz, head-to-head.
Sinner’s perfect 2024 campaign continues
Jannik Sinner is aiming to win his third consecutive title this season after winning the Australian Open and the Rotterdam Open.
Sinner just beat home favourite Ben Shelton 7-6(4), 6-1, making him the winner of 35 of his past 37 matches.
After a tough opening set, Jannik Sinner won 15 of his 17 points to break the match wide open with a 3-0 lead in the second set. The reigning Australian Open champion never looked back from there, as he notched his 17th win in a row on the ATP Tour.
Because he has reached the Indian Wells Masters quarter-finals, Sinner earned his 150th hard-court tour level win, becoming the first player born since 2000 to achieve such a feat.
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