Rafael Nadal congratulates Carlos Alcaraz for winning Indian Wells 2023 and regaining World No. 1 ranking

Rafael Nadal is the latest to join the tennis world in tipping his hat to Carlos Alcaraz after the youngster dethroned Novak Djokovic by winning the 2023 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

Top seed Alcaraz beat fifth seed Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 6-2 in the final in one hour and 11 minutes, in what was their second meeting. The Russian, who was looking to win his 20th straight match on the tour, moved to No. 5 in the ATP rankings after winning back-to-back titles in Rotterdam, Doha, and Dubai.

Alcaraz became the first player to win the tournament without dropping a set since Roger Federer in 2017. It was the 19-year-old Spaniard's third Masters 1000 title in as many finals. After Nadal, he has become the only player to win at least three Masters tournaments before turning 20. The 22-time Grand Slam champion amassed six as a teenager.

The two Spanish stars clashed in the semifinals at Indian Wells last year, with the senior winning in three sets. Although Nadal missed out on playing this year due to a hip injury that he picked up at the 2023 Australian Open, he sent his wishes to his compatriot.

"Congratulations, Carlos, for returning to #1 and for the title in Indian Wells," Nadal wrote on his Instagram stories.

The World No. 1 was quick to respond as he thanked the legendary player.

"Thank you very much, Rafa," Alcaraz replied.

Alcaraz won the 2022 Miami Open and will be required to defend his title in a few days to stay at the top of the rankings. The second leg of the Sunshine Double is scheduled to be played from March 22 to April 2.

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Carlos Alcaraz looks forward to playing against Novak Djokovic in future

In their sole meeting so far, Carlos Alcaraz beat Novak Djokovic 6-7(5), 7-5, 7-6(5) in the semifinals of the 2022 Madrid Open. The Serb has missed out on quite a few notable events due to his stance on COVID-19 vaccines.

After winning the 2023 Indian Wells, Alcaraz was asked if he was looking forward to facing Djokovic in the future. The Spaniard nodded and remarked that in order to be the best, he had to beat the best.

"Yes, of course. I mean, Novak is one of the best players in the world," Alcaraz said. "That's obvious. You know, I will say that if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best. I really wanted to play against Novak again. We miss him on tour, and hopefully, to have him back very, very soon. But yeah, of course, it could be amazing to play against him again."