Carlos Alcaraz has staged a formidable title defense campaign so far at the 2025 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. Ahead of his quarterfinal, the Spaniard revealed what he thinks of his next opponent.
Alcaraz, the two-time defending champion at Indian Wells, has yet again made the final eight after resounding victories against Quentin Halys (6-4, 6-2), Denis Shapovalov (6-2, 6-4), and Grigor Dimitrov (6-1, 6-1). He faces Francisco Cerundolo for a spot in the semifinals on Thursday, March 13.
Cerundolo, who is chasing his fourth career title, is in a fine run of form, having put together a decent South American claycourt swing. He crushed World No. 2 Alexander Zverev during his run to the final in Buenos Aires.
On the hardcourts of Indian Wells, the Argentine started his campaign with a remarkable escape in his opening match against local Mackenzie McDonald, 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-1. He then easily beat Novak Djokovic-conqueror Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3, 6-4 before securing a top-10 win against Alex de Minaur 7-5, 6-3.
Carlos Alcaraz, who has a 1-0 tour-level record against Francisco Cerundolo, spoke about the latter’s prowess on all surfaces ahead of their clash.
“Well, he’s playing great,” he said in his press conference. “I don’t know which surface is his favorite, if clay or hard court. He plays really well on both. Even grass, too. I mean, that means that he’s a complete player. He can play really good tennis in every surface.”
He expressed caution about their upcoming encounter.
“It’s gonna be a difficult one.”
Alcaraz and Cerundolo’s first and only tour-level match so far came at the 2024 Queen’s Club Championships. The Spaniard produced a 6-1, 7-5 win against the Argentine then. Meanwhile, on the Challenger circuit in 2019, Alcaraz suffered a 6-2, 6-4 claycourt defeat.
Carlos Alcaraz on facing Francisco Cerundolo at Indian Wells 2025: “I will have to be really focused”
During the aforementioned press conference, Carlos Alcaraz revealed that he had taken note of Francisco Cerundolo’s performance against Alex de Minaur, who has been a formidable opponent across the past year.
“He came to beat de Minaur, top-10 player, really well. I watch the match before,” he said.
The 21-year-old also shared his strategy going into the match.
“I will have to be really focused on my tennis, on the things that I have to do. I will try to play aggressive with passion, let’s say,”
he said.
“I know his style. I’ve practiced a lot of times with him, that match, and I watch a lot of matches from him. I will try to be really focused on that.”
Carlos Alcaraz is bidding for his second title of the season at Indian Wells and 18th overall. The winner between him and Francisco Cerundolo faces either Jack Draper or Ben Shelton for a place in Sunday’s final.
