INDIAN WELLS: Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz fought off swarming bees and Alexander Zverev on Thursday to set up a semi-final clash with Jannik Sinner here at Indian Wells.

World number two Alcaraz was stung on the forehead and temporarily forced from the court as a “bee invasion” halted his quarter-final against Germany’s Zverev with just two games completed.

He looked none the worse for wear when play resumed after a delay of almost two hours, polishing off a 6-3, 6-1 victory and avenging a quarter-final loss to Zverev at the Australian Open.

Sinner powered into the semi-finals with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Czech Jiri Lehecka pushing his match win streak to 19.

Sinner’s run stretches back through last year’s Davis Cup finals and includes a perfect 16-0 record in 2024.

In the semi-finals he’ll be out to turn the tables on Alcaraz, who beat him at the same stage last year on the way to the title in the California desert.

Alcaraz said he never imagined his title defense would find him ducking for cover amid a swarm of bees.

He and Zverev were just two games into their match when the bees overwhelmed proceedings, Alcaraz swatting and swiping at the insects after being stung on the forehead.

The bees swarmed the remote-controlled “spider cam” and Alcaraz and Zverev had already run for cover when chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani announced “Ladies and gentlemen, play is suspended due to bee invasion.”

“For sure the most unusual match I have ever played in my career,” he said, recalling that he noticed the bees after winning a point on serve in the third game.

A bee expert was summoned and removed the bees clustered on the aerial camera with a live-capture vacuum.

The players were brought back on court to warm up, although Alcaraz insisted beekeeper Lance Davis get rid of some stragglers around the player chairs and equipment.

“I’m not going to lie,” Alcaraz said “I’m a little bit afraid of bees.” But he had no more trouble — with the bees or Zverev.

Alcaraz can expect a tough challenge against Sinner, who captured his first Grand Slam title in Melbourne and has since lifted the trophy in Rotterdam.

In breezy conditions on court two, Sinner was in firm control, breaking Lehecka early in each set and saving the only break point he faced in the match.

Fourth-ranked Daniil Medvedev, runner-up to Alcaraz last year, booked a return trip to the semi-finals with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over seventh-ranked Holger Rune of Denmark.

Medvedev will play Tommy Paul of US, who turned the tables on Casper Ruud with a 6-2, 1-6, 6-3 victory over the ninth-ranked Norw­egian.

Paul belted 35 winners, saving two break points when serving for the match before clinching it on his second match point.

On the women’s side, world number one Iga Swiatek had just got rolling when she found herself in the Indian Wells semi-finals on Thursday as Caroline Wozniacki retired from their quarter-final with a foot injury.

The intriguing match-up between the current and former number ones saw 33-year-old Wozniacki race to a 4-1 lead.

But 22-year-old Swiatek found her range and reeled off six straight games, pocketing the first set 6-4 and taking a 1-0 lead in the second before Wozniacki called a halt, having received treatment for an apparent blister on her right foot at the end of the first set.

Swiatek booked a semi-final meeting with Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk, who beat Russian Anastasia Potapova 6-0, 7-5.

US Open champion Coco Gauff reached the Indian Wells semis for the first time, beating China’s Yuan Yue 6-4, 6-3.

Wozniacki started strong in her bid for a first win over a reigning number one since she beat Simona Halep to win the 2018 Australian Open. But Swiatek gradually hit her stride — closing out the opening set with an ace.

In the semi-finals Gauff will face ninth-seeded Maria Sakkari of Greece, who beat American Emma Navarro 5-7, 6-2, 6-4.

Published in Dawn, March 16th, 2024