Carlos Alcaraz will be looking to put his defeat at the Qatar Open behind him when he heads to Indian Wells.
Alcaraz lost to Jiri Lehecka in the quarter-finals of the Qatar Open, that brought an end to his winning streak.
Prior to the tournament in Doha, Alcaraz won the Rotterdam Open to claim his first ATP title on indoor hard courts.
Since his defeat in the Qatari capital, Alcaraz has been spotted practising on certain parts of his game as he bids to improve ahead of Indian Wells.
Carlos Alcaraz bidding to win third consecutive Indian Wells title
Alcaraz appears to enjoy the conditions at Indian Wells, having won back-to-back titles in the tournament often dubbed as ‘tennis paradise’.
Having won 12 consecutive matches at the Masters 1000 tournament, Alcaraz stated his intentions to keep his run going when speaking to EFE Deportes.
“I’m really looking forward to going to Indian Wells already; it’s a place I love to play and love to be at,” said Alcaraz. “I think the last two years have shown how comfortable I am there. Hopefully, this year it happens again.
“We’re going to try to do our best, prepare well these days, this week, to start the tournament strong, and hopefully, we can achieve that milestone of winning three consecutive times. So, let’s see this year.”
Only two players in history have been able to win three consecutive singles title at Indian Wells, with Rafael Nadal unable to do so during his decorated career.
However, Nadal was actually the last player to be able to beat Alcaraz at Indian Wells having won their 2022 semi-final.
Which two men have won Indian Wells three times in a row?
Alcaraz has distanced himself from big three comparisons throughout his young career, and it is actually two members of that elusive group that made history at Indian Wells.
Roger Federer was the first to do so, after winning the Indian Wells title for three consecutive years between 2004 and 2006.
The Swiss was unable to add to his Indian Wells trophy cabinet until 2012, before winning his fifth and final title in the desert in 2017.
Novak Djokovic is the only other singles player in history to win three Indian Wells titles back-to-back, having already won titles in 2008 and 2011.
Following his third victory in 2014, Djokovic went on a 17-match winning streak in California to cement his legacy at the tournament with a now joint record of five titles.
The Serbian has not win a title at Indian Wells since 2016, and Djokovic was stunned by Luca Nardi in the third round last year.
Djokovic also has concerns heading into Indian Wells this year, having raised alarms following his first round defeat in Doha.
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