Carlos Alcaraz is the undisputed champion of the 2023 edition of Indian Wells beating Daniil Medvedev 6-2, 6-3. He put on a clinic in his thorough beat down of Danill Medvedev, making him look ordinary in the process.

It was a shocking turn of events given how well Medvedev has been playing on hard courts, winning three tournaments in a row since the Australian Open. Alcaraz on the other hand had been absent at the Australian Open as he recovered from injury, and reached the final at the Rio Open, meaning there was not much tennis for him leading up to Indian Wells.

None of that mattered as he showed up to Indian Wells as the number one seed, and won the tournament without dropping a set. Quality players like Sinner and Auger-Aliassime had no answers for Alcaraz either. Alcaraz now moves on to Miami where he’ll go for the sunshine double. He’ll be the favorite there once again, especially in the absence of Djokovic.

Let’s look at some of the other storylines that filled the last two weeks at Indian Wells:

Holder Rune and Stan Wawrinka got into another little spat during their round of 32 match. Last year after losing to Rune in Paris, Wawrinka had some words at the net for Rune, essentially calling him a little baby for complaining all the time. This time, as the winner, he had no words for Rune, and Rune asked him straight up why he had “nothing to say” after his win. Rune was implying that Wawrinka only has words if he loses. Drama!

What is going on with Diego Schwartzman? He has been one of the most consistent tennis pros in the last ten years, rarely losing to players ranked below him, and posting an occasional win against the likes of Rafa Nadal and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Not anymore. The diminutive Argentine has made it a habit of losing in the first or second round of every tournament he’s entered this year. I’m a big Diego fan, so I’m hoping he gets it together for the clay court European swing.

After watching most of the matches from Indian Wells, I can confidently say that there are three players I consider to be in top form right now. That is Jannik Sinner, Taylor Fritz and Carlos Alcaraz. They showed the most grit and resilience at Indian Wells. I was especially impressed with Sinner, who looks like he’s put on like 10 pounds of new muscle.

A special mention to Frances Tiafoe, who even though I don’t think is at the level Sinner, Fritz, and Alcaraz are at, he’s very close. I’m also hoping he goes deep in Miami so we can keep seeing that wonderful outfit he’s sporting!

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