Carlos Alcaraz ‘didn’t understand’ major Indian Wells change ahead of title defence in absence of Jannik Sinner
In The Absence Of Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz Questions Indian Wells Court Change but Remains Confident in Title Defense
Carlos Alcaraz has admitted he “didn’t understand” why Indian Wells made a surprise change to its court surface ahead of this year’s tournament.
Known for its traditionally slow hard courts, Indian Wells has long been regarded as one of the toughest Masters 1000 events to win. However, just days before the start of the 2025 edition, tournament organizers announced a shift from Plexipave to Laykold, the same surface used at the Miami Open and US Open—both of which tend to play at a faster speed.
Alcaraz, who has dominated in the desert over the past two years with back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024 (defeating Daniil Medvedev in both finals), was caught off guard by the change but remains confident in his ability to adapt.
“The court is faster, right?” Alcaraz remarked. “Honestly, it’s a change I didn’t understand. For 25 years, the tournament had the same court, and now it’s different. I don’t know why they did it.”
Despite his initial surprise, the Spaniard is optimistic about his ability to adjust:
“I consider myself a player who adapts well to different surfaces and conditions. I think I play great tennis anyway, even if the courts are a bit faster. But all I can say is I didn’t understand the decision.”
Alcaraz Aims for Historic Three-Peat
As the second seed in the draw, Alcaraz remains a strong favorite to claim his third consecutive title. Should he succeed, he would join Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic as the only men to win three straight Indian Wells trophies.
His path to the final is no easy task, with a potential quarter-final clash against Djokovic on the horizon. The absence of world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, who is serving a three-month suspension, removes one of his biggest rivals from the equation, but Alcaraz insists his approach remains the same.
“It doesn’t change at all,” he said. “Jannik’s not playing, but there are still a lot of the best players in the world here. The draw is really open, and plenty of players are playing great tennis.”
Alcaraz received a first-round bye and will begin his title defense against either Quentin Halys or qualifier Pablo Carreno Busta. He could then face 27th seed Denis Shapovalov and 14th seed Grigor Dimitrov before a potential showdown with Djokovic in the last eight.
Should he make it to the final, a championship clash against top seed Alexander Zverev could be on the cards.
