Medvedev & Sinner Meet in the 2026 Indian Wells Open Final
The Indian Wells Open Final is set after Daniil Medvedev and Jannik Sinner produced strong semifinal performances at the BNP Paribas Open in California.
Medvedev defeated world No.1 Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets, while Sinner overcame Alexander Zverev to book his place in the championship match.
Medvedev Ends Alcaraz’s Winning Run
Daniil Medvedev handed Carlos Alcaraz his first defeat of 2026 and ended the Spaniard’s 16-match winning streak.
The Russian secured a 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) victory to reach the Indian Wells Open Final.
Medvedev controlled most of the opening set. Alcaraz tried to respond while serving at 2-5, holding to love with a powerful cross-court forehand.
However, Medvedev stayed calm and closed the set 6-3.
The second set was more competitive. Alcaraz broke early to take a 3-1 lead, but Medvedev immediately broke back with a strong return.
The Spaniard later moved ahead 5-4, but he failed to convert two set points on Medvedev’s serve.
Medvedev forced a tie-break and dominated it to seal the match.
The former world number one was elated to defeat one of the toughest challenges on tour. After the match, Medvedev said:
“Playing someone like Carlos, you play many times… you lose many times. He’s an amazing player. You need to be at your best and I was. Super happy to beat someone as strong as him.”
Sinner Dominates Against Zverev
Jannik Sinner also delivered a strong performance to reach his first-ever Indian Wells Open Final.
The Italian defeated fourth seed Alexander Zverev 6-2, 6-4 in one hour and 23 minutes.
Sinner converted 3 of the 6 break points he created during the match.
He broke Zverev in the fifth and seventh games to take control of the first set.
Zverev had a chance to break in the second set when Sinner trailed 2-3, but the Italian saved the break point.
Sinner then broke again to move 4-3 ahead before serving out the match.
The victory marked Sinner’s sixth consecutive tour-level win over Zverev.
Indian Wells Open Final – Medvedev vs Sinner
Sunday’s Indian Wells Open Final will be the first meeting between Medvedev and Sinner since the 2024 Nitto ATP Finals.
Both players have been dominant during the tournament and neither has dropped a set so far in California.
Medvedev enters the final on an impressive run. He has now won 18 consecutive sets, a streak that began at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Indian Wells Open 2026 – Women’s Final
The women’s final has also been decided at the Indian Wells Open. Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina will face off in a rematch of their 2023 Indian Wells final where the latter back then.
At the Indian Wells Open Final, Sabalenka and Rybakina will meet in a final for the 3rd time in just over 4 months. World number three Rybakina has won 4 of their 5 meetings in finals, most recently at the WTA Finals in November and Australian Open in January.
Top seed Aryna Sabalenka reached the final after defeating Linda Noskova 6-3, 6-4 in the semifinals.
Sabalenka relied on her powerful serve and aggressive baseline game to control the match.
She will face Elena Rybakina in the final in what will mark the Belarusian 14th WTA 1,000 final and third at Indian Wells.
Rybakina secured her place with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Elina Svitolina. The Kazakh player broke late in the first set and maintained her advantage in the second to win the match.
After the Indian Wells Open, the players will travel to Florida for the Miami Open 2026 where Aryna Sabalenka will be defending her title.
Jannik Sinner (2024), Daniil Medvedev (2023) and Carlos Alcaraz (2022) are all recent Miami Open champions.
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