By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday March 15, 2025
Jack Draper scored his biggest career win, defeating Carlos Alcaraz, 6-1, 0-6, 6-4, to reach his first Masters final.
Photo Source: Tony Chang Photography
Indian Wells, California – Carlos Alcaraz was thought to be nearly invincible on the slow-playing hard courts at the Indian Wells Tennis Center.
Entering Saturday’s semifinal with Great Britain’s Jack Draper he had reeled off 16 consecutive wins in the California desert, and his dream of becoming the third player in history to complete a three-peat at the iconic Masters 1000 event was just two victories from being realized.
Not so fast, said Draper, who pushed past Alcaraz in a thrilling, if strange, battle on Stadium 1, 6-1, 0-6, 6-4, to reach his first Masters 1000 final.
Draper, 23 and headed for a Top 10 debut next week, will face Holger Rune for the title on Sunday.
“I have watched the top players in the world play on that court for many, many years now, and it feels amazing,” Draper said of his win that featured two lopsided sets and one pressure cooker that saw him break early and hold on for dear life at the finish.
The southpaw started with menace, racing out to a 3-0 lead, and eventually finished off the opening set, 6-1.
“I think today has been a difficult day for me. I didn't practice well. I didn't feel myself well on court,” Alcaraz said. “You know, even in the warm up on court, I was missing a lot. I didn't feel my shots.”
Alcaraz later said that he planned too much on finding and exploiting Draper’s weaknesses and didn’t think enough about his own strengths.
“I think today I was more worried about his level, his game, than myself,” Alcaraz said. “So I think that was a big problem to me, that I was always thinking about his weaknesses rather than my best things. So when you're thinking more about the opponent than yourself, then it is a big problem.”
Alcaraz attacked ferociously in the second set and didn’t give Draper a single game. It seemed like he’d rifle through the rest of the match, but Draper gave himself a good, hard look in the mirror between sets and came out firing.
“After that set went away, I went to the toilet and just kind of looked at myself in the mirror and was like, ‘You need to really get your stuff together.'”
Draper did just that.
There was a controversial moment where a video review took center stage at with Alcaraz serving at 1-1 15-all in the third set. When umpire Mohamed Lahyani ruled that a Draper volley was “not up” the Brit asked for the review. It revealed that Draper did get the ball before a second bounce.
When Lahyani ordered the point replayed, Draper challenged again, and review determined that the call did not affect Alcaraz’s subsequent shot, which was wide. Draper was awarded the point and afterwards called Alcaraz to the net to ask him if he felt that his shot was hindered by Lahyani’s call.
Alcaraz said no and they played on, with Draper breaking later in the game.
"Didn't bother me at all," Alcaraz later said of the moment.
Draper broke again for 5-2, coming through a four-deuce game, and finally served out the match on the second time of asking.
It was an impressive display from Draper on so many levels. His firepower, his movement, his mental toughness to rebound after getting blown away in the second set, and his ability to close out the biggest win of his career.
“He deserves to play a final in the Masters 1000. I am happy about him because I didn't doubt his level,” said Alcaraz. “He's ready to stay there for a long time. He's ready to play for the big events, for the big tournaments. I wasn’t surprised by what I saw today. It wasn't an easy match for him, playing for the top 10, playing for the first Masters 1000 final, and I think he did great. He dealt with the nerves better than I did. So great to him and all the best in the final.”