Medvedev delivered a sensational performance at the 2026 Indian Wells Masters to beat world No 1 Alcaraz 6-3, 7-6(3) in the semi-finals in Indian Wells, which ended the Spaniard’s 16-match win streak.
The 2021 US Open champion then fell 6-7(6), 6-7(4) to Sinner, the world No 2, in the championship match at the Masters 1000 event.
This ended Medvedev’s run of nine straight wins and 18 consecutive sets that started with his title run at the Dubai Championships last month.
The 30-year-old Russian was trying to become the first player to beat both Alcaraz and Sinner at the same tournament since Novak Djokovic at the 2023 ATP Finals.
Medvedev, a former world No 1, was ranked 11th before the start of Indian Wells, and he has climbed to 10th in the latest ATP Rankings.
In his press conference after his defeat to Sinner at Tennis Paradise, Medvedev was asked if he can be the player to challenge Alcaraz and Sinner on a regular basis.
“Tough to say, because I lost a lot of matches against them, and I did lose again today against Jannik,” said Medvedev.
“I know that I can be a good tennis player, and I will try my best to, whoever is on the other side of the net, maybe it’s Carlos and Jannik, maybe it’s someone else, I will just try to play some good tennis, which I proved I can do again here, Dubai, Brisbane.
“So that’s my goal, because I think in general on one-match basis, anyone can challenge them. I mean, you saw Jakub beat Jannik in Doha, you saw, well, me beat Carlos here, stuff like this.
“So on one-match basis, a lot of guys can challenge that. I think it’s not right to say it’s only me or only Novak or whatever, only Sascha [Zverev].
“But it’s definitely very tough, and that’s why, when you come to the end of the season, usually they have, like what, 60 wins, and I don’t know, five, six losses, out of which four come from themselves, as well. So it’s not easy challenge, and you just need to try your best.”
