Draper knocks off 2-time defending champion Alcaraz to reach Indian Wells final

INDIAN WELLS, Calif. (AP) — Jack Draper toppled two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz 6-1, 0-6, 6-4 on Saturday to reach the BNP Paribas Open final.

The 13th-seeded Draper will face 12th-seeded Holger Rune on Sunday. Rune beat fifth-seeded Daniil Medvedev 7-6, 6-4 in the first semifinal for his 150th tour-level victory.

In the women’s final Sunday, top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka will play 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva. They won semifinal matches Friday night in chilly conditions.

Draper ended Alcaraz’s 16-match winning streak in the ATP Masters 1000 event in the California desert. The 23-year-old English left-hander — set to break into the top 10 in the world for the first time Monday — won last year in Vienna and Stuttgart for his lone tour titles. He's 2-3 against Alcaraz.

“It was a strange match in all honesty,” Draper said “Carlos came out a little flat, I sensed that. I had a chance in the first game of the second, and he came up with an ace. … What happened to him happened to me, I got tight, I had low energy.

"Against the top players in the world, they can change their momentum very quickly. I got lost out there for 25 minutes, but in the third, I was really proud of my competitiveness, my attitude and I somehow managed to get over the line.”

Alcaraz, seeded second, missed a chance to become the youngest player to win three consecutive singles titles at any ATP Tour event — and just the third to do it at Indian Wells. The 21-year-old Spanish star won in Rotterdam in February for his 17th ATP Tour title.

The 21-year-old Rune, from Denmark, snapped a seven-match losing streak in semifinals. He’s 2-2 against Medvedev.

“It means everything,” Rune said. “The job is not over yet, but it feels amazing. Playing Daniil is one of the toughest challenges for me on tour. I managed to beat him the first time (we played), but we know each other well. I obviously had the right tactics, but it was still so difficult because he puts in great effort and is super solid. So, I’m very proud of myself.”

Rune has four ATP Tour titles. His biggest victory came in Paris in 2022 in another ATP Masters 1000 tournament.

Medvedev won the last of his 20 ATP Tour titles in 2023. The 29-year-old Russian lost to Alcaraz last year in the Indian Wells final.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, returns to Jack Draper, of Great Britain, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Jack Draper, of Great Britain, reacts after defeating Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, in their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Jack Draper, of Great Britain, celebrates after defeating Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, in their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Holger Rune, of Denmark, celebrates after defeating Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, in their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Holger Rune, of Denmark, celebrates after defeating Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, in their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Holger Rune, of Denmark, left, shakes hands with Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, after defeating him in their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, returns to Jack Draper, of Great Britain, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Jack Draper, of Great Britain, returns to Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Jack Draper, of Great Britain, returns to Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, returns to Jack Draper, of Great Britain, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, right, discusses a call with Jack Draper, of Great Britain, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, reacts to winning a point against Jack Draper, of Great Britain, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Jack Draper, of Great Britain, reacts to a call as he plays against Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Jack Draper, of Great Britain, returns to Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, returns to Holger Rune, of Denmark, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Holger Rune, of Denmark, celebrates a point against Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, serves to Holger Rune, of Denmark, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Holger Rune, of Denmark, returns to Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Holger Rune, of Denmark, runs forward to return against Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Holger Rune, of Denmark, returns to Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Holger Rune, of Denmark, celebrates a point against Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Holger Rune, of Denmark, celebrates a point against Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, during their semifinals match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Indian Wells, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

MIAMI (AP) — Some oil vessels are diverting away from Venezuela after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened a “blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers entering or leaving the South American country, a dramatic escalation in the White House’s pressure campaign on leader Nicolás Maduro.

Trump said Tuesday on social media, in all caps, that he is ordering a "total and complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers” into and out of Venezuela, a move that threatens to choke off revenue from the world's largest oil reserves that are key to Maduro's grip on power.

It’s not clear exactly what Trump meant by his threats. U.S. sanctions adopted during his first administration make it illegal for Americans to purchase Venezuela’s crude oil without a license from the Treasury Department.

Additionally, hundreds of ships themselves have been sanctioned — part of a massive shadow fleet of often aging vessels that has proliferated in recent years to transport oil on behalf of Iran, Russia, Venezuela and other U.S. adversaries under sanctions.

At least 30 vessels under sanctions are navigating near Venezuela, according to Windward, a maritime intelligence firm that helps U.S. officials target the shadow fleet. A few have started to change their course, perhaps fearing they could face the same fate as the Skipper, a sanctioned vessel seized by U.S. forces last week near Venezuela.

“It’s quite clear that this has disrupted energy flows to and from Venezuela,” said Michelle Wiese Bockmann, a senior analyst at Windward. "Every hour when we’re tracking these vessels, we are seeing tankers that are deviating, loitering or changing their behavior.”

Among those is the Hyperion, which had been sailing toward the Jose port in Venezuela before doing a 90-degree turn early Wednesday and starting to head north away from the South American mainland.

The vessel, previously part of Russia’s state-owned shipping fleet, was one of 173 sanctioned in the final days of the Biden administration for allegedly facilitating Russian oil sales in violation of sanctions over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Following the penalties, the vessel changed its flag from the Comoros to Gambia. But the West African nation deleted Hyperion — along with dozens of other vessels — from its privately run ship registry in November for allegedly using false certificates claiming to have been issued by its maritime authority.

The vessel’s ownership also is obfuscated under multiple layers of offshore companies, some of them listed in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

“It’s just screaming that it’s in a position to be seized,” Wiese Bockmann said.

Since the first Trump administration imposed punishing oil sanctions on Venezuela in 2017, Maduro’s government has boosted its reliance on a network of rogue tankers to smuggle a growing share of the roughly 900,000 barrels of oil per day that the OPEC nation produces.

Sanctioned tankers carried about 18% of Venezuela’s international shipments during the second half of this year, up from 6% in the first half of the year, according to Jim Burkhard, global head of oil markets and mobility at S&P Global Energy.

Burkhard said that while supplies to China, the main destination for most Venezuelan oil, could be affected, he doesn't expect any major disruption to oil markets.

“Volatility or uncertainty around Venezuela is not new, it’s not a shock,” he said. Markets also react more when supplies of oil are scarce, and “the market today is not tight. There’s plenty of oil.”

Unaffected for now is the roughly 143,000 barrels per day of Venezuelan heavy crude sent to U.S. refineries along the Gulf coast, much of it transported by Chevron, which has a waiver to operate in Venezuela.

“Chevron’s operations in Venezuela continue without disruption and in full compliance with laws and regulations applicable to its business, as well as the sanctions frameworks provided for by the U.S. government," spokesman Bill Turenne said.

Still, for the industry's rogue actors, Trump's threat of a blockade represents a paradigm shift.

“There are already ships that have decided not to leave Venezuela for fear of being seized, and there are also ships headed to Venezuela to load crude oil that decided to turn back," said Francisco Monaldi, a Venezuelan oil expert at Rice University in Houston.

That's good news for the oceans, where hundreds of vessels, many without insurance and poorly maintained, were a constant menace.

"Many of these are no more than floating rust buckets," said Wiese Bockmann, the Windward analyst. "So irrespective of the sanctions and the geopolitical reasons for their being targeted, it is a good thing to have a strategy to deal with them and to remove them from trading.”

Associated Press writer Michael Biesecker and Michelle L. Price in Washington, Regina Garcia Cano in Caracas, Venezuela, and David McHugh in Frankfurt, Germany, contributed to this report.

President Nicolas Maduro addresses supporters during a rally marking the anniversary of the Battle of Santa Ines, which took place during Venezuela's 19th-century Federal War, in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)