Matteo Arnaldi vs Carlos Alcaraz Prediction & Betting Tips - ATP Indian Wells

Prediction published on 07/03/2024, 14:05  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 07/03/2024 at 15:06 in ATP Indian Wells Predictions

Second seed Carlos Alcaraz faces unseeded Matteo Arnaldi in the Indian Wells second round.  For the winner, there's a place in the last 32 against either 31st seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime or a qualifier. Alcaraz is ranked second in the world but down to third in the live rankings. It's been a slow start to the year for the Spaniard and he'll hope to pile up some ranking points in this outdoor hard court Masters 1000 tournament. The 20 year-old has made a steady start to the new year and this is only his fourth tournament in 2024. He reached the last eight of the Australian Open and then the last four of the clay court tournament held in Cordoba. His most recent event was also on clay but he lost in his opening match against Thiago Monteiro in Rio. Just two games were played in that match before Alcaraz retired due to a sprained ankle. He's had one previous match against Arnaldi, beating him in straight sets in last year's US Open.

Matteo Arnaldi is ranked 40th in the world, a couple of places behind his career high of 38th. The first round of this tournament saw him beat Luis Van Assche in straight sets. It was tight though with each set going to a tie-break. That win has taken him to 37th in the live rankings. The Italian reached the quarter finals in Brisbane in his first tournament of the year. Since then, he's failed to win two matches in any of the four tournaments he's subsequently played before Indian Wells. We tip Alcaraz to win this in straight sets.