World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz powered past Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday to book a semifinal showdown with Daniil Medvedev at Indian Wells, after the Russian knocked out defending champion Jack Draper 6-1, 7-5.
In the women’s draw, world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka advanced to the last four with a tight 7-6 (0), 6-4 victory over 19-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko, while Iga Swiatek fell to Elina Svitolina 6-2, 4-6, 6-4.
Fresh off his title at the Australian Open, Alcaraz stretched his perfect start to the season to 16-0 with a composed performance in the night session, keeping his bid for a third Indian Wells crown firmly on track.
The Spaniard cruised through the opening set and, after briefly trailing 0-2 in the second, quickly wrestled back control to close out the match against Norrie and set up a semifinal clash with two-time runner-up Medvedev.
"It was really difficult. I struggled with Cameron’s style,” Alcaraz said.
"I was trying to play my best, but there was a little bit of confusion. His forehand has super topspin and his backhand is very flat, so sometimes it’s tricky to play against him and find the right shots.
"But I played solid and aggressive when I could. I’m happy to be at this level.”
Russian 11th-seeded Medvedev was also in impressive form against Draper, who had little time to recover after his stunning three-set win over Novak Djokovic on Wednesday.
Draper raised his level in the second set and stayed with his opponent to 5-5, but Medvedev secured a late break before serving out the match.
"The first set was unreal. I couldn’t miss a ball. It was an unbelievable level,” said Medvedev, who reached the semifinals for the fourth consecutive year.
Fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev beat Frenchman Arthur Fils 6-2, 6-3 to reach the Indian Wells semifinals for the first time and become only the fifth player to complete the set of last-four appearances at all nine ATP Masters 1000 events.
The German faces a major test next as he takes on world No. 2 Jannik Sinner, after the Italian made light work of American Learner Tien 6-1, 6-2.
Svitolina upsets Swiatek
World No. 2 Swiatek struggled early against Svitolina, with the Ukrainian capitalizing on five double faults to secure three breaks and take the opening set in 38 minutes.
Swiatek found her rhythm in the second to force a decider, but Svitolina regained the upper hand by securing the only break in a tight third set before confidently closing out the match.
"I’m extremely happy. It was a tough match,” said Svitolina, who is back in the semifinals for the first time in seven years. "Iga always brings a bit extra out of me with that fighting spirit. I had to really push myself to close that match.”
Belarusian Sabalenka had a battle on her hands against rising talent Mboko. The top seed was pushed to a first-set tiebreak, which she won to love, a career first.
The second set followed a similar script, with Mboko clawing back to 5-4 and threatening another tiebreak. But four-time Grand Slam champion Sabalenka closed it out to reach the semifinals.
"She is definitely a future Grand Slam champion,” Sabalenka said. "It’s incredible to see how brave these young girls are these days.”
Sabalenka next plays Linda Noskova, who ended Australian qualifier Talia Gibson’s fairytale run 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, the Czech reaching her second WTA 1000 semifinal.
Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina advanced with a 6-1, 7-6 (4) victory over Jessica Pegula to reach another Indian Wells semifinal, where she will face Svitolina.
The victory ensures Rybakina will leapfrog Swiatek and reach a career-high world No. 2 when the WTA rankings are updated on Monday.