There is no stopping Jannik Sinner right now.
The Italian extended his winning streak to 19 matches on Thursday at the BNP Paribas Open where he overcame Czech Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 6-3 to reach the semi-finals in Indian Wells.
Competing in windy conditions, Sinner dealt with Lehecka’s depth and weight of shot well, finding consistency in the key moments. He committed 13 unforced errors compared to 35 from Lehecka, while he broke the 22-year-old’s serve three times to advance after one hour and 25 minutes. Sinner is now 16-0 on the season.
"I am very pleased becasue the situation on court was different," Sinner said. "In the morning it was really windy and in the first set it was tough to handle the situation. He is an incredible player and has huge potential, so I was aware of every point that I made.
"In the other way I am just happy becasue I made the semi-finals last year and this year I have a chance to play in the semis again. It is one of the greatest tournaments that we have in the whole year, so I am really happy and pleased."
Winner of 36 of his past 38 matches, Sinner is seeking to win his third consecutive title this season after triumphs at the Australian Open and Rotterdam. He is also bidding for his second ATP Masters 1000 crown following his Toronto run last August.
The 22-year-old could renew his rivalry with Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-finals, with Sinner leading the Spaniard 4-3 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series. Defending champion Alcaraz plays Alexander Zverev later on Thursday.
Sinner is currently second in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and would close the gap to No. 1 Novak Djokovic to 815 points if he captures his 13th tour-level crown.
Lehecka upset Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets earlier this week and was playing in his first ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final. He had no answer against Sinner, though, holding his back at times in the second set in discomfort while he struggled to breach the Italian’s defence.
Undefeated starts to an ATP Tour season (since 1990)
| Streak | Player |
| 41 | Novak Djokovic (2011) |
| 26 | Novak Djokovic (2020) |
| 20 | Rafael Nadal (2022) |
| 17 | Novak Djokovic (2013), Roger Federer (2018), Pete Sampras (1997) |
| 16 | Roger Federer (2006), Jannik Sinner* (2024) |
| 15 | Andre Agassi (1995), Novak Djokovic (2023) |
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