From Medvedev, no apology, no mercy

INDIAN WELLS — No apologies this time from Daniil Medvedev. In a way, no mercy either.

The guy with consecutive I’s in his first name is also the guy who’s now with 19 consecutive victories, the most recent over Frances Tiafoe, 7-6, 7-6 (4) Saturday in the semifinals of the BNP Paribas Open.

Medvedev, 27, a Russian although that hardly matters in a sport as international as tennis — he speaks English better than many Americans — is full of opinions if not necessarily himself.

He challenged the fans at the 2019 U.S. Open in New York. He whined about the playing surface in 2023 here at Indian Wells (later backing off and saying he had acted immaturely).

Sunday the challenge will be sporting, when in the final Medvedev faces Carlos Alcaraz, the 19-year-old U.S. Open champion, who in the second BNP semi, defeated Jannik Sinner, 7-6(4), 6-3.

A year ago, Medvedev, a former No. 1 and U.S. Open champion, was in a slump. Or a funk. Whatever, he was losing and the tennis folk were coming up with all sorts of reasons, not including the inescapable fact he had undergone hernia surgery.  

But as verified by his current streak that two weekends included a win over No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the Dubai final, his game is in full recovery.

Before the semi, Medvedev conceded he was in a zone — as if with a steak of almost  20 straight people would expect something else.

“First of all, I’m really happy to win. It was a crazy match even the ending, tough. I still feel not stressed, but it’s definitely better to win 7-5, 6-3, because then you get the energy level down. But I know how to go through it, so that’s not a problem.”

The only problem for Tiafoe, one of the young American stars, is that while he’s improved tremendously over the last two or three years, he is better than dozens of others on the circuit, he’s a notch behind people like Medvedev and Djokovic. And despite all the work and support, always may be.

The U.S. hasn’t had a Grand Slam champion since Andy Roddick in 2003. It did have an Indian Wells winner in 2022, Taylor Fritz, and a runner-up this year, Tiafoe.

Before the semi, Tiafoe pointed out, “The more you put yourself in position, the more you have the chances to win.”

This was another chance, but it ended up as Medvedev’s win. Not that he had escaped the pressure.  

“I mean it’s just another opportunity,” he said about making the final — repeating what seemingly every tennis player says about every match.

“The question is ‘Did I advance my position?’ Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t.” 

Nineteen wins in a row have to be considered an advance. It’s hardly a regression.

At Indian Wells Tiafoe feels the vibes

INDIAN WELLS — Tennis is as much a battle against yourself as against the person across the net, a struggle to become a winner while trying to hit winners, to build belief maybe long after building a better backhand.

It’s a sport in which, because of the seeding system, the best prospects, the new kids, if you will, start off with the worst chances. An activity the late Jim Murray wrote in which the young are not pampered. They’re devoured.

Sure there are exceptions, such as Carlos Alcaraz, the Spaniard, who last summer at age 19 won a Grand Slam tournament, the U.S. Open, but for most the climb is exhausting and perhaps unrewarding.

That’s why it was exciting to see (and in post-match comments) hear the delight in Francis Tiafoe on Wednesday after he beat a former champion Britain’s Cameron Norrie 6-4, 6-4 in their quarterfinal of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

You probably know the back story. Tiafoe is the son of a laborer who moved from war-torn Sierra Leone to America where Frances was born and through connections on a project building a tennis complex near Baltimore, was able to get lessons for the boy.

Frances’ natural athletic ability came out quickly enough. Yet despite optimistic predictions from the tennis establishment both Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz, each now 25, would be on the world stage immediately. They needed time. They were normal.

They also turned out to live up to expectations, theirs as much as ours. Fritz, a Californian who virtually was born with a silver racquet in his (fore) hand — his mother Kathy May, was in the U.S. Open doubles quarterfinals — took this BNP event a year ago, defeating Rafael Nadal in the final.

That doesn’t mean his longtime friend and rival, Tiafoe, will take it this year. Not with the Russian, Medvedev, a winner Wednesday after whining Tuesday about the speed of the courts at Indian Wells — “freaking slow” — as his next opponent.

Still, after beating Norrie, Tiafoe acted as a man unburdened. And as we have learned, you’re better when you’re not feeling the pressure. And when you are feeling relaxed.

Tiafoe knows fully what he is doing and how he’s doing it with assistance on this day of clouds, rain, sunshine and help from a crowd fully intending to be partial to Tiafoe. “I just think there are vibes all around.” 

Tiafoe again was asked why he has gone farther at Indian Wells than in any previous Masters 1000 event — the most prestigious and prestigious on the ATP Tour. 

“Every win builds more and more confidence. I’m using my speed a lot more to be aggressive, not just to react to balls. I’ve been super happy being here. You know I have a lot left in the tank.” 

Which he will need the next two rounds, daring to think he might get that far.

Indian Wells defending champ plays like one

INDIAN WELLS — The only trouble with being the defending champion is that everyone keeps reminding you that you’re the defending champion. As Taylor Fritz has learned at the BNP Paris Tennis Open where, yes, he is defending champion.

Fritz also is sort of a local, having lived, worked out and competed in this desert community. Which makes it well, worse hardly is the appropriate word when, in fact, you’re adding a footnote to success.

The defending champ — last reference — played like one Monday in the BNP Paribas Open, defeating Sebastian Baez of Argentina, 6-1, 6-2. Since the match was only 1 hour, 10 minutes, you might say, borrowing the cliché, that Fritz hardly raised a sweat. But on a day when the thermometer reached 82 degrees Fahrenheit all you needed to perspire was to blink your eyes.

Which is all Baez had time to do against Fritz, who at No. 5 is the highest American in the men’s rankings, damn impressive for an American who’s 25. Or any age.

Some would provide a disclaimer on the one-sided Fritz victory, pointing out Baez is a clay court specialist, and the courts at Indian Wells are very hard indeed.  No thanks.

Rafael Nadal felt most comfortable (and was most successful) on clay courts. But he also won on the grass at Wimbledon and the hard courts everywhere. 

If you can play, you can play whatever the surface or conditions.

Fritz, the son of two tennis parents (his mother Kathy May reached the quarters at the U.S. Open) can play. He and Francis Tiafoe — and now maybe newbie Ben Shelton — are supposed to be the future of U.S. men’s tennis, part of the so-called “Next Gen.”

Maybe, but Monday, Fritz was magnificent. Then again, Baez was bewildered.

Fritz’s problem would seem to be his own body. Two weeks ago after a match in the humidity of Acapulco, Mexico, Fritz had severe cramps. And throughout his career, he’s had numerous injuries.

“I have no idea why,” said Fritz when asked if he could explain the ailments. “I think I’ve been very lucky, but obviously I do recover from things very quickly. I think a lot of that has to do with my willpower, and like I hate to be out.  I hate to be injured.”

For the time, Fritz is healthy and thinking positively. He’s done his best to avoid the praise from the gang. He appears wise and experienced enough not to fall into the trap of arrogance.

 “Like every hour or so people keep telling me I’m defending here. But I am trying to take it how it is. You know we start over at zero.  I’m trying to have good results, trying to put myself in the best position to end the year at the highest spot.”

A win in a match that barely went two hours would seem Taylor Fritz is headed in the proper direction.

Palm Springs Life: Fritz Fizzles at BNP Paribas Open

By Art Spander
Palm Springs Life

Taylor Fritz didn’t have his serve Thursday — hey, sometimes Andy Roddick and Pete Sampras struggled — but he did have his sense of perspective. After Fritz was whipped by the other young American hotshot, Francis Tiafoe, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3, in their first-round match of the BNP Paribas Open, he was asked how long it would take him to get over a loss.

Until that moment, most of Fritz’s comments in the media room were the sort expected from a disappointed 18-year-old: that he made too many mistakes; that he usually handles pressure very well. But the recovery time after a defeat?

Read the full story here.

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