Carlos Alcaraz has won every match he’s played in 2026, picking up two titles.
The Spaniard has been in fine form and looks a strong favorite to win Indian Wells.
Reacting to Alcaraz’s quarterfinal win over Cameron Norrie, former American star Steve Johnson suggested he was widening the gap to his closest rival, Jannik Sinner.
His fellow American, and Nothing Major podcast co-host, John Isner, disagreed.
John Isner thinks it’s too early to tell if Carlos Alcaraz has widened gap to Jannik Sinner
Johnson shared his thoughts on Alcaraz’s quarterfinal win.
“He looked really good. Cam Norrie is a tough out; he’s won this tournament, 2021 maybe, something like that. He’s obviously very comfortable on these courts,” said Johnson.
“The courts are so slow, watching it, you can see the balls get really puffy. At the end of the ball changes, they get slow. That suits Cam pretty well, so he’s done extremely well on these courts.
“But Carlos [Alcaraz] can just hit through anything, I don’t think it matters. His forehand was huge, he served really well, hasn’t lost a match this year, and his confidence is at an all-time high.
Carlos Alcaraz in 2026
- 1. 2026 Australian Open 1R [WIN] vs Adam Walton, 6-3, 7-6, 6-2
- 2. 2026 Australian Open 2R [WIN] vs Yannick Hanfmann, 7-6, 6-3, 6-2
- 3. 2026 Australian Open 3R [WIN] vs Corentin Moutet, 6-2, 6-4, 6-1
- 4. 2026 Australian Open 4R [WIN] vs Tommy Paul, 7-6, 6-4, 7-5
- 5. 2026 Australian Open QF [WIN] vs Alex de Minaur, 7-5, 6-2, 6-1
- 6. 2026 Australian Open SF [WIN] vs Alexander Zverev, 6-4, 7-6, 6-7, 6-7, 7-5
- 7. 2026 Australian Open F [WIN] vs Novak Djokovic, 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5
- 8. 2026 Qatar Open 1R [WIN] vs Arthur Rinderknech, 6-4, 7-6
- 9. 2026 Qatar Open 2R [WIN] vs Valentin Royer, 6-2, 7-5
- 10. 2026 Qatar Open QF [WIN] vs Karen Khachanov, 6-7, 6-4, 6-3
- 11. 2026 Qatar Open SF [WIN] vs Andrey Rublev, 7-6, 6-4
- 12. 2026 Qatar Open F [WIN] vs Arthur Fils, 6-2, 6-1
- 13. 2026 Indian Wells 2R [WIN] vs Grigor Dimitrov, 6-2, 6-3
- 14. 2026 Indian Wells 3R [WIN] vs Arthur Rinderknech, 6-7, 6-3, 6-2
- 15. 2026 Indian Wells 4R [WIN] vs Casper Ruud, 6-1, 7-6
- 16. 2026 Indian Wells QF [WIN] vs Cameron Norrie, 6-3, 6-4
“This is Carlos entering a scary territory of just continuing to dominate, not showing any weaknesses, to basically anyone in the world, outside of [Jannik] Sinner, Novak [Djokovic]… maybe a couple of guys can kind of get to him.”
Sam Querrey asked Johnson if he believes Alcaraz has widened the gap to Sinner.
“Yeah, I think so. The only issue was that he’d lose early; he had those a few times, last year, the year prior,” said Johnson.
“That doesn’t even seem like it’s possible anymore.”
Isner disagreed with Johnson’s claim.
“No [He’s not widening the gap], it’s too early to tell,” he said.
“I think we all agreed that last year Sinner was the best player, even though he finished number two; he missed three months, he was 500 points behind Carlos at the end of the year.
2025 year-end top five
| Rank | Name | Country | Points | Points gap to #1 |
| 1 | Carlos Alcaraz | Spain | 12,050 | – |
| 2 | Jannik Sinner | Italy | 11,500 | 550 |
| 3 | Alexander Zverev | Germany | 5,110 | 6,940 |
| 4 | Novak Djokovic | Serbia | 4,820 | 7,230 |
| 5 | Felix Auger-Aliassime | Canada | 4,190 | 7,860 |
“It’s too early to tell!
“He’s had a better start to the year than Sinner, but Sinner, in my mind, looks good; that gap is not widening.”
Johnson and Querrey continued to back Alcaraz, winding up their co-host.
“We don’t all agree on that, but…” said Johnson.
“Until they play each other, the gap is widening.”
“It’s widening a little bit,” Querrey added.
Alcaraz could have a chance to widen the gap if he beats Sinner in the final, but there’s work to do for both players before then…
Who will Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner play in the Indian Wells semifinals?
Alcaraz and Sinner could meet in the final if they win their semifinal matchups.
2026 Indian Wells men’s singles semifinals
- [1] Carlos Alcaraz vs [11] Daniil Medvedev
- [4] Alexander Zverev vs [2] Jannik Sinner
Alcaraz will play Daniil Medvedev, and Sinner will play Alexander Zverev in the semis.
The Spaniard has a winning 6-2 head-to-head record against Medvedev, and has previously beaten him in two Indian Wells finals.
And Sinner leads his head-to-head with Zverev, 6-4.
If both players stay true to form, they’ll meet for a 17th time on Sunday.
Only time will tell who will emerge victorious in California, but you certainly won’t want to miss any of the action.
The men’s semifinals will be played on Saturday, March 14, before the final takes place on Sunday, March 15.