Rafael Nadal congratulates Carlos Alcaraz after Spaniard breezes past Daniil Medvedev to successfully defend Indian Wells title

Rafael Nadal has congratulated Carlos Alcaraz following the latter's successful defense of the BNP Paribas Open men's singles title.

Alcaraz faced Daniil Medvedev in the final at Indian Wells for the second successive year. The Spaniard reached the final after beating Matteo Arnaldi, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Fabian Marozsan, Alexander Zverev, and Jannik Sinner.

Medvedev made his way into the final following victories over Roberto Carballes Baena, Sebastian Korda, Grigor Dimitrov, Holger Rune, and Tommy Paul.

Medvedev started the final on the front foot, racing to a 3-0 lead in the first set. However, Alcaraz soon found his feet and forced a tiebreak before eventually winning the set 7-6(5).

The second set was a far more one-sided affair. The ATP World No. 2's exceptional variety of shots proved far too difficult for the Russian to deal with. Alcaraz dominated the set and won it 6-1, sealing his second successive Indian Wells title with aplomb.

Congratulatory messages poured in for the Spaniard on social media following his win. Rafael Nadal was one of the firsts to congratulate the 20-year-old.

"Congratulations," Nadal wrote in an Instagram post (translated from Spanish), where he also tagged Alcaraz.

Rafael Nadal's congratulatory Instagram post for Carlos Alcaraz

The 22-time Grand Slam winner's post also featured four applause emojis, two trophy emojis, and an emoji of Spain's national flag.

Alcaraz's latest success at Indian Wells marked his fifth ATP Masters 1000 title before the age of 21. Nadal had won nine of them before he had turned 21.

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Rafael Nadal spoke highly of Carlos Alcaraz at The Netflix Slam

Carlos Alcaraz (L) and Rafael Nadal (R) at The Netflix Slam

On 3 March, Nadal and Alcaraz faced off at The Netflix Slam, an exhibition event in Las Vegas. It marked Nadal's return to tennis since sustaining a hip injury during his Brisbane International loss to Jordan Thompson. Alcaraz was also making his comeback from a brief spell with an ankle injury sustained at this year's Rio Open.

The 20-year-old won the exhibition match 3-6, 6-4, 14-12. After the match, Nadal was asked about his thoughts on Alcaraz. The former World No. 1 jokingly expressed relief about the fact that he will not have to face his younger compatriot much as he is nearing the end of his career.

"It's a good thing that as a player I will not face him many times," Nadal said. (via The Telegraph).

However, the 22-time Grand Slam winner also spoke from a fan's perspective, saying that he will draw pleasure from watching Alcaraz in the years ahead.

"As a fan, I will enjoy watching him for many years hopefully. He's an amazing player. He's only 20 years old and he's already won two Grand Slams and a couple of important tournaments," Nadal added.

After the conclusion of The Netflix Slam, Nadal announced his withdrawal from the BNP Paribas Open. It is widely expected that the veteran Spaniard will give it his all to be fully fit in time for the clay season.