Sports
Danill Medvedev stuns Carlos Alcaraz, faces Jannik Sinner in Indian Wells final
Daniil Medvedev hits a return against Carlos Alcaraz during the BNP Paribas Open men’s semifinal match in Indian Wells, Calif., March 14, 2026. After second-seeded Italian Jannik Sinner polished off No. 4 Alexander Zverev of Germany 6-2, 6-4, in the first semifinal in the California desert, most observers likely penciled in another Sinner-Carlos Alcaraz final of an ATP 1000 event.
But Danill Medvedev had other ideas.
The resurgent 11th-seeded Russian stunned the Spaniard, 6-3, 7-6 (3) and will face Sinner for the championship on Sunday at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif.
Alcaraz was 12-0 in 2026 and had won 16 consecutive matches, capturing the Australian Open and the ATP 500 event in Doha, Qatar. But Medvedev broke on his only two opportunities and saved four of five of Alcaraz’s break chances to snap a four-match losing streak to the World No. 1.
Medvedev, who has never won the title at Indian Wells, rallied from 30-0 down to break Alcaraz in the fourth game of the match and only lost three more points on his serve to take the first set.
Alcaraz had two set points in the 10th game of the second set, but the crafty 30-year-old held him off and the set reached a tiebreaker. Medvedev raced to a 6-1 lead and won the match on his next service opportunity.
“Playing someone like Carlos, you play many times, you lose many times,” Medvedev said. “He’s an amazing player with amazing shots, defense, attack, return, everything. So, you need to be at your best.”
After playing Zverev on level terms for the first four games, Sinner ran off the final four games of the first set and was back in his chair in only 32 minutes.
The second set was more competitive and Zverev had one chance to move ahead 4-2. But Sinner erased the one break point chance, broke the German in a five-point seventh game and coasted to and posted his sixth consecutive win over Zrerev.
“Yes … it means a lot to me,” Sinner said about reaching his first final at Indian Wells. “Third time that I play in semifinals, so I’m very happy to be for the first time in the final. Now we see what’s coming tomorrow.”
As many elite players do, Sinner took advantage of Zrerev’s second serve, winning 14 of 22 points. He recorded 16 winners and only six errors in the 83-minute match.
Sinner was questioned about facing Medvedev if the upset did take place.
“Yeah, you know, he’s back to very, very high level,” said Sinner. “Very big serve, I feel like. You know, he’s returning very well. Very, very deep.
“And I think Daniil has found again a good, good balance on court, winning a title in Dubai, coming here, making again great results. But also last time we played has been quite a while now.”
The two have met 15 times since 2020, but not since the Nitto ATP Finals in 2024. Sinner leads the series 8-7, winning eight of the last nine meetings after Medvedev captured the first six. They have faced off in five finals, with Sinner holding a 3-2 edge, including a five-set victory in the 2024 Australian Open.
Medvedev expressed confidence in procuring his third ATP title of the season and first at Indian Wells.
“If I manage to maintain the level I had throughout the tournament and maybe even raise it, I will have my chances,” he said.
–Field Level Media
Sports
F1 officially cancels Bahrain, Saudi Arabia GPs due to Iran war
May 1, 2025; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Fans pose for a picture in front of the F1 logo in the team village ahead of the F1 Miami Grand Prix at Miami International Autodrome. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images Formula 1 officially canceled races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia scheduled for April because of safety concerns from the ongoing war in the Middle East.
The Bahrain Grand Prix was scheduled for April 12, while the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix was set for April 19.
“While several alternatives were considered, it was ultimately decided that no substitutions will be made in April,” F1 said in a statement released Saturday.
Iran is accused of launching drone and missile attacks on both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia in response to the Israel- and U.S.-led war on Iran.
Just a month ago, teams were conducting testing at the Bahrain International Circuit.
The races are not likely to be rescheduled at a later date, given the full F1 calendar, ESPN reported.
The decision to cancel the two races leaves F1 with a 22-race schedule and a five-week gap between the Japanese Grand Prix on March 29 and the Miami Grand Prix on May 3.
The Chinese Grand Prix is scheduled for Sunday.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Celtics dominate 2nd quarter, extend Wizards' skid to 11
Mar 14, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) controls the ball against Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) during the first half at the TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images Neemias Queta scored a game-high 24 points and had 10 rebounds to help the Boston Celtics end a two-game losing streak by beating the visiting Washington Wizards 111-100 on Saturday night.
Boston received 20 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists from Jayson Tatum, and a 16-point performance from Jaylen Brown. Derrick White scored 15 and Luka Garza added 15 off the bench.
Boston outrebounded Washington 55-38. The Celtics grabbed 19 offensive rebounds.
The loss stretched Washington’s losing streak to 11. The Wizards have lost nine in a row on the road.
Tristan Vukcevic made 6 of 7 3-point attempts and led the Wizards with 22 points. Fellow reserve Jamir Watkins added 15 points and six rebounds and Bilal Coulibaly finished with 12 points. Trae Young scored 11 and had six assists.
Alex Sarr was 1 of 9 from the field and was held to four points.
Boston led by nine in the opening quarter, but Washington went in front 27-26 on a Watkins 3-pointer with 1:05 left. Boston led 29-27 after 12 minutes. Queta scored 13 points in the quarter.
The Celtics scored 19 of the first 21 points in the second quarter and had a 48-29 advantage with 4:58 remaining in the first half. Boston outscored Washington 35-14 in the second and led 64-41 at halftime.
Queta made 10 of 12 shots from the field in the first half, when he led all scorers with 22 points.
Boston pushed its lead to 83-53 on a Brown basket with 5:34 left in the third, but the Wizards used a 15-5 run late in the quarter to trim their deficit to 20. Boston carried a 93-72 lead into the fourth.
The Wizards trailed by 12 following a Vukcevic 3-pointer with 4:21 to play, but failed to get closer than 11 the rest of the way.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Nashville blanks Columbus, sits lone atop Eastern table
Mar 14, 2026; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Nashville SC forward Woobens Pacius (17) kicks the ball as Columbus Crew midfielder Malte Andre Gomes (20) defends during the first half at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images Hany Mukhtar scored in the fourth minute of second-half stoppage time Saturday night and visiting Nashville SC stayed unbeaten with a 1-0 win over the Columbus Crew.
The match appeared destined for a scoreless draw without much in the way of true high-danger chances until Mukhtar received expert service from Cristian Espinosa. After taking a pass in the box from Andy Najar, Espinosa spun defender Rudy Camacho around twice and then fed Mukhtar near the goal mouth, where he poked the ball past Patrick Schulte.
The goal enabled Nashville (3-0-1, 10 points) to claim the top spot in the Eastern table despite Columbus (0-2-2, 2 points) controlling the ball most of the night. The Crew possessed the ball for 55.3% of the fixture and made 171 more passes than their visitors.
But they couldn’t convert that into goals and remained winless through four matches under first-year coach Henrik Rydstrom. Meanwhile, Nashville goalie Brian Schwake (two saves) recorded his second clean sheet — both on the road.
Prior to Mukhtar’s marker, neither team generated a scoring opportunity of better than 9%. Each finished the match with eight shots, while Nashville had a 4-2 advantage in shots on frame.
Nashville came into the match boasting a top 10 offense and defense, scoring seven times in its first three fixtures while conceding just twice. Meanwhile, Columbus found its defensive shape last week but couldn’t find the back of the net in a scoreless draw with Chicago.
This one trended more toward that match and less towards the wide-open affairs the Crew played in the first two matches. Neither team generated a chance with a goal expectancy of even 10% in a scoreless first 45 minutes.
Columbus came the closest to scoring in the third minute of stoppage time but Max Arfsten’s long-range try from outside the box struck the crossbar and bounced away.
Jack Maher logged Nashville’s only first-half shot on net in the 39th minute on a header but Schulte (three saves) was able to parry it away.
–Field Level Media
F1 officially cancels Bahrain, Saudi Arabia GPs due to Iran war
Celtics dominate 2nd quarter, extend Wizards' skid to 11
