3 min readUpdated: Mar 15, 2026 12:42 PM IST
Daniil Medvedev handed Carlos Alcaraz his first defeat of 2026 in the Indian Wells semi-final, prevailing with a 6-3, 7-6(3) scoreline over the world no 1 from Spain. After stopping the Alcaraz juggernaut (where the Spaniard went unbeaten in 16 games and won titles at Australian Open and Doha), Medvedev was asked if he felt that he could catch up to the leading lights of the current generation, Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
To this, the 30-year-old Medvedev had a simple response.
“I don’t care too much about these things, because I’m already, first of all, a bit too old. I’m not Next Gen anymore,” said Medvedev.
Medvedev’s reward for overpowering Sinner is a clash against Sinner in the final.
“I had a tough year last year, so even more perspective now that I need to do my best, that’s it. Jannik and Carlos are far better than all of us. Only one match we can beat them … they are so good. They are so much better than us.
“Djokovic, Federer, Nadal were so much better than us. But Djokovic, Nadal, and Jannik and Carlos are probably also better than all the ones that were there before. They would struggle against them. It is what it is.”
It took a special performance from Medvedev to overcome Alcaraz, one that the world no 1 from Spain highlighted in his own comments.
Carlos Alcaraz returns a shot against Daniil Medvedev during a semifinal match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament, Saturday, March 14, 2026, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo)
“I just have to give credit to Daniil. I think he just played an amazing match. Since the start of the match until the end of the match, he was playing unreal, I’ve got to say. I have never seen, to be honest, Daniil playing like this,” Alcaraz said after his semi-final defeat.
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Medvedev, meanwhile, said that while the 22-year-old Alcaraz would probably be the favourite every time they meet.
“Maybe I play 10 matches against Carlos, probably I’m going to lose more than I’m going to win,” he added. “But whenever I go on court, I need to believe in myself, I need to do my best, and try to win as much as I can.”
