INDIAN WELLS: The blockbuster Indian Wells semi-final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner resumed after a three-hour rain delay on Saturday with the world number two ranking on the line along with a finals berth.
Australian Open champion Sinner was up 2-1 on serve in the opening set when he and defending champion Alcaraz departed for the locker room as light rain made the Stadium Court too slippery to play on.
They returned shortly thereafter and warmed up, but the desert showers struck again, just as they had on Friday when two rain delays totaling more than two hours interrupted Maria Sakkari's semi-final victory over Coco Gauff in the WTA event.
Alcaraz defeated Sinner in straight sets in last year's Indian Wells semi-finals on the way to a title that returned him to number one in the world.
He's trying to become the first repeat Indian Wells ATP champion since Novak Djokovic won three straight titles from 2014-2016.
But Sinner has won both of their two meetings since and rode a 19-match winning streak into the contest.
His perfect 16-0 record in 2024 includes a maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open and the title at Rotterdam last month.
"He's the best tennis player in the world right now, without a doubt," 20-year-old Alcaraz said of his 22-year-old rival. "He's playing unbelievable. No losses this year.
"So, it's going to be a really difficult match. It's going to be a big challenge for me to see what my level is facing him."
Sinner, the first Italian to reach number three in the world rankings, could nudge Alcaraz out of the No. 2 spot with a victory.
Alcaraz, chasing his first title since Wimbledon last July, hasn't dropped out of the top two since his 2022 US Open victory catapulted him to number one for the first time.
The winner of the match will face either fourth-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev or American Tommy Paul in Sunday's final.
Alcaraz beat Medvedev in last year's Indian Wells final while Sinner stormed back from two sets down to defeat him in the Australian Open final in January.--AFP