Carlos Alcaraz continued to defy logic by winning his 15th consecutive match of the season on Wednesday.
Alcaraz parted ways with longtime coach Juan Carlos Ferrero at the end of last year. However, the split seems to have reinvigorated Alcaraz, and he has now won 15 matches in a row to start 2026.
The Spaniard is looking to win a third consecutive tournament in Indian Wells, and he moved a step closer to doing so after beating Casper Ruud 6-1, 7-6 in the fourth round.
The 22-year-old was in blistering form against Ruud, hitting seven aces on his way to victory, and he will hope his good form continues against Cameron Norrie in the quarter-finals.
By winning his 15th consecutive match, Alcaraz equalled Andre Agassi’s best ever start to an ATP season while also joining an elite group alongside Jannik Sinner and Stefan Edberg.
Carlos Alcaraz’s Open Era achievement
As per statisticians OptaAce, Alcaraz is now one of only three players in the Open Era to have won 15 consecutive matches to start a season before the age of 23.
Do you believe Carlos Alcaraz is already the greatest tennis player of all time?
Jannik Sinner did so in 2024, winning 16 matches in a row to start the year.
During this run, Sinner won the Australian Open and Rotterdam Open before being knocked out in the Indian Wells semi-finals by Carlos Alcaraz.
As for Edberg, the six-time Grand Slam singles champion achieved the feat after winning the Australian Open and Memphis Open before losing in the final of Indian Wells to Boris Becker.
If Alcaraz were to defeat Cameron Norrie later this week, he would equal Jannik Sinner and Roger Federer’s best starts to a season.
Alcaraz has already eclipsed Stan Wawrinka’s best start: Wawrinka won 13 consecutive matches to start the 2014 ATP campaign.
Carlos Alcaraz must be wary of the Cameron Norrie threat
There are 28 places separating Carlos Alcaraz and Cameron Norrie in the ATP rankings, yet it is Norrie who has won three of their last five matches.
Norrie last played Alcaraz at the 2025 Paris Masters, stunning the Spaniard in three sets.
After the match, Norrie said: “This win is so big for me. I had lost the first round of the qualifiers here last year. Coming back from my injury, I’ve been trying to enjoy my tennis in the second half of the year and I was able to do that.
“To get the biggest win of my career, my first win over a world number one, and probably the most confident player in the world right now, I am pleased with the way I did it.
What do you think is Carlos Alcaraz’s best surface and why?
“I actually went for a walk this morning with my coach and we talked through serving for the match and what I needed to tell myself,” said Norrie, who beat Sebastian Baez in straight sets in Monday’s first round.
“I was so, so tight serving for the match yesterday against [Sebastian] Baez.
“I told myself I deserved to be in this moment, I want to be here, and I felt quite relaxed.
“It was a nice walk, a very important walk.”
