Impressive Raducanu into Indian Wells third round
Emma Raducanu makes an impressive start at Indian Wells as the British number one records a straight-set victory over Russian Anastasia Zakharova.
Emma Raducanu makes an impressive start at Indian Wells as the British number one records a straight-set victory over Russian Anastasia Zakharova.
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[NEWSLETTER FORM]Alexander Zverev and Matteo Berrettini renewed their long-running rivalry on Friday at the BNP Paribas Open, where fourth seed Zverev produced a big-hitting display to reach the third round.
The German struck 19 winners to just 11 unforced errors and did not face a break point in the match, winning 82 per cent of his second serve points en route to a 6-3, 6-4 victory in Indian Wells.
Zverev leads Berrettini 5-3 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series, with this the World No. 4’s first win against the Italian since the 2021 Nitto ATP Finals, an event Zverev won. Following his 71-minute triumph, the fourth seed will next meet Brandon Nakashima or Camilo Ugo Carabelli.
“I am very happy with the performance,” Zverev said in his on-court interview. “Against Matteo, it is very difficult. I lost the past two matches against him. I have struggled in Indian Wells before, but I feel different this year. Hopefully, it is going to be a different result and it was a good start.”
Zverev is a seven-time ATP Masters 1000 champion but has never triumphed in Indian Wells. The 28-year-old’s best result in the Californian desert was quarter-final showings in 2021 and 2024, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. Earlier this year, the No. 4 player in the PIF ATP Rankings reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open.
“He is somebody that is extremely aggressive, massive forehand, massive serve,” Zverev said of Berrettini. “When you back off a little bit, it is very difficult against him, but today I thought I was the one pushing, I was the one being aggressive.”
[NO 1 CLUB]Zverev could face 15th seed Flavio Cobolli in the fourth round. The Italian moved past Miomir Kecmanovic 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to continue his red-hot recent run, having won his third tour-level title last week at the ATP 500 event in Acapulco.
Cobolli, competing at a career-high No. 15, dug deep after losing the first set and produced a brilliant serving display in the decider, winning 13 of his 14 first-serve points. The 23-year-old will play Frances Tiafoe or Jenson Brooksby in the third round. Cobolli has fond memories of playing Tiafoe after defeating the American in the recent Acapulco final.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]In May 2018, 16-year-old Jannik Sinner was playing the final tournament of his junior career in Milan when he faced Czech Jonas Forejtek in the third round. In the crowd that day was another Czech player, Dalibor Svrcina.
“He was playing good, but you wouldn’t say he was something so special. You could definitely see the potential, but he was still young, skinny, and making some errors,” Svrcina told ATPTour.com. “It’s definitely amazing to see the progress of Carlos and Jannik, because I knew both of them in the juniors and they really were not ahead so much.
“So it’s really, really great to see and motivation that if you are improving and doing the right things, you can improve in your own way.”
Svrcina will challenge Sinner for the first time Friday in the second round of the first ATP Masters 1000 event of the year: the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.
“He knows who I am. I know him, obviously, but we never practised,” Svrcina said. “We know each other from juniors a little bit. He didn’t play much juniors, but we saw each other. I’ve known him since he was maybe 15, 16, so we say hi to each other, but we never got to practise with each other.”
The 23-year-old will now stand across the net from the No. 2 player in the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time, having never previously clashed against a Top-10 opponent. Svrcina is well aware of the test he will face in the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head showdown.
“I think he’s just so solid and playing so fast, taking the time away. He can do basically everything,” Svrcina said. “You can see that before, maybe one or two years ago, he didn’t have so much variation in shots, like maybe Carlos’ drop shots.
“But you can see he is trying to improve that. He is trying to play some drop shots. You can see that they are always working on something to improve. So, basically, I will see on Friday what’s so amazing about it, but let’s see. I am looking forward to it.”
The Czech has taken inspiration from watching Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz continue to reach new heights. Svrcina is currently finding a lot of joy in the knowledge that every day, he can find a way to improve.
“You can go to the gym, you can work on yourself, mentally, physically. This is the part of tennis that you don’t see much with the players because mostly you see how they practise, how they play matches,” Svrcina said. “But you don’t see the stuff they do at home or in everyday life. So I’m enjoying that a lot.”
[NO 1 CLUB]The World No. 109, who reached a career-high No. 86 in November, has recently begun playing bigger matches. Less than a year ago, he faced former World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev in Toronto before playing him again in Shanghai.
“Before that match in Toronto against Medvedev, I didn’t get to play a lot of matches like that against the top guys, and now I’ve played Medvedev twice,” Svrcina said. “I played Bublik. Now I’m going to play Sinner, so for me, it’s really, really good to gain these experiences.”
Svrcina traveled to the California desert from Acapulco with fitness coach Thiyagarajan Karunakaran. They flew from Acapulco to Tijuana, crossed the border from Mexico into the United States, and then, after spending one afternoon in San Diego, drove to Indian Wells.
The Ostrava-born righty likes spending time with friends in nature at home, particularly in the nearby mountains. So it is fitting that Svrcina marveled at the mountains during that drive and is preparing for the biggest match of his life with mountains in the backdrop of the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
“I’m really liking it. The place is amazing,” Svrcina said. “The tournament is great, so I’m very happy to get through the qualifying and the first round. I’m very glad I’m playing well and to be able to play Jannik next round is amazing.”
[NEWSLETTER FORM]There are plenty of ways to warm up for a big tournament, but Novak Djokovic added a little NFL flair to his preparations ahead of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
The Serbian star shared a light-hearted clip on Instagram from the California desert, where he posted footage of himself launching a spiral with an American football. The Serbian had a very specific person in mind when he shared it.
[NO 1 CLUB]After sending the ball sailing downfield, Djokovic tagged seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady in the caption with a playful question: “Good form?”
It didn’t take long for the NFL legend to notice, with Brady delivering a quick-fired response.
“Actually you look a lot more confident out there than a lot of the guys I watch on Sunday,” Brady replied, leaning into the joke and giving Djokovic’s throwing motion a glowing review.
The interaction is the latest between the two sporting greats. Djokovic and Tom Brady have crossed paths several times in recent years, including at the US Open and Roland Garros, where the NFL legend has been spotted watching the 101-time tour-level titlist in action.
Djokovic is chasing a record sixth title in Indian Wells this fortnight, having last triumphed at the ATP Masters 1000 event in 2016. The 38-year-old Serbian, who is 6-1 on the year according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index, will face Kamil Majchrzak in his opening-round match on Saturday.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Carlos Alcaraz is aiming to win his third title at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells this fortnight.
The No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, who triumphed in 2023-24, would become just the fifth player with three or more trophies at the ATP Masters 1000 event. Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer hold the record for the most titles (five) in Indian Wells.
Former World No. 1 Jimmy Connors won the first edition of the event in 1976, which was the first of three titles he claimed. Jack Draper is the most recent champion in Indian Wells, having defeated Alcaraz and Holger Rune en route to the 2025 trophy.
Here is a breakdown of all players to triumph at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
Past Champions at the BNP Paribas Open
| Champion | Year Won |
| Jack Draper | 2025 |
| Carlos Alcaraz | 2024 |
| Carlos Alcaraz | 2023 |
| Taylor Fritz | 2022 |
| Cameron Norrie | 2021 |
| Dominic Thiem | 2019 |
| Juan Martin del Potro | 2018 |
| Roger Federer | 2017 |
| Novak Djokovic | 2016 |
| Novak Djokovic | 2015 |
| Novak Djokovic | 2014 |
| Rafael Nadal | 2013 |
| Roger Federer | 2012 |
| Novak Djokovic | 2011 |
| Ivan Ljubicic | 2010 |
| Rafael Nadal | 2009 |
| Novak Djokovic | 2008 |
| Rafael Nadal | 2007 |
| Roger Federer | 2006 |
| Roger Federer | 2005 |
| Roger Federer | 2004 |
| Lleyton Hewitt | 2003 |
| Lleyton Hewitt | 2002 |
| Andre Agassi | 2001 |
| Alex Corretja | 2000 |
| Mark Philippoussis | 1999 |
| Marcelo Rios | 1998 |
| Michael Chang | 1997 |
| Michael Chang | 1996 |
| Pete Sampras | 1995 |
| Pete Sampras | 1994 |
| Jim Courier | 1993 |
| Michael Chang | 1992 |
| Jim Courier | 1991 |
| Stefan Edberg | 1990 |
| Miloslav Mecir Sr. | 1989 |
| Boris Becker | 1988 |
| Boris Becker | 1987 |
| Joakim Nystrom | 1986 |
| Larry Stefanki | 1985 |
| Jimmy Connors | 1984 |
| Jose Higueras | 1983 |
| Yannick Noah | 1982 |
| Jimmy Connors | 1981 |
| Roscoe Tanner | 1979 |
| Roscoe Tanner | 1978 |
| Brian Gottfried | 1977 |
| Jimmy Connors | 1976 |
Jack Draper says he no longer has “any fear” around the arm injury that plagued him for eight months as he prepares to begin his Indian Wells title defence.
Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic are set to headline action at the BNP Paribas Open.
Second seed Sinner, who is in the bottom half of the draw, will open his Indian Wells campaign on Friday, when he will face qualifier Dalibor Svrcina in the second round. The Italian has won all of the other five hard-court events at the ATP Masters 1000 level and is chasing his first title in the California desert.
Top seed Alcaraz, who is in the top half of the draw, will begin his bid for a third Indian Wells crown on Saturday. He will take on former World No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov in his opening match. The No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings fell to eventual champion Jack Draper in the semi-finals in 2025.
Djokovic, who is in the same half of the draw as Alcaraz, will also start on Saturday, when he faces Kamil Majchrzak in his first match since the Australian Open final in January. The third seed is a five-time champion at the event and is seeking his 102nd tour-level title this fortnight.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]Players have criticised the decision for a tennis tournament to be held in the UAE in the midst of Iranian attacks – including one still stranded there.
Lost in the drama of Matteo Berrettini’s cramping at the end of his first-round BNP Paribas Open win Wednesday was someone in his box: former World No. 4 Thomas Enqvist.
The Italian has recently been working with the 19-time ATP Tour titlist, with their relationship dating back to Berrettini’s participation in the 2021 Laver Cup, where Enqvist was vice captain for Team Europe.
“I remember the energy,” Berrettini told ATPTour.com. “When I was by myself in Boston the first time that I went there, my fitness coach arrived the day of the match, so I basically got ready with Thomas. But Thomas was the one who was taking care of my preparation, my training and everything.”
Bjorn Borg was famously one of the event’s first captains alongside rival John McEnroe. And even though Berrettini was highly complimentary of Borg, one of 29 members of the ATP No. 1 Club, he was immediately struck by Enqvist’s presence.
“I remember feeling this energy. This guy loves tennis and loves to work with players, and I just remember that,” Berrettini said. “I was like, ‘Who knows, maybe in the future we can work together’. And it happened, so I’m really happy and proud of that.”
Enqvist spent time in the offseason with Berrettini, who began his year last month in Buenos Aires. After losing the first set in four of his first six matches of 2026, the former No. 6 player in the PIF ATP Rankings also dropped his opener Wednesday against Adrian Mannarino.
But Berrettini dug in under the intense California sun and rallied past the Frenchman 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 in two hours and 49 minutes. After match point, he fell to the court due to the cramp. The battle left him smiling.
“That’s the thing that I enjoyed the most today. I kept telling myself that these are the matches and fights that I’m working for,” Berrettini said. “All those trainings, all those days, waking up and going to hit so many balls, it is all for these moments.
“I’m so glad, I’m so happy that I could do that. The cramping is because I gave it all. I just want to feel like this when I play. That’s the main goal.”
[NO 1 CLUB]Berrettini simply hopes to put himself in such positions. The 29-year-old has struggled with injuries over the past few years and fallen as low as World No. 154.
Through the toughest moments, the Italian has worked towards moments like he enjoyed Wednesday — and opportunities like the one he’s earned Friday against two-time Nitto ATP Finals champion Alexander Zverev.
“I think you’ve got to embrace and enjoy the process that brings you to the court because if you’re too smiley out there, I feel, at least for me, it doesn’t really work 100 per cent,” Berrettini said. “I need to have the kind of fear, the kind of tension that needs to be there in order to perform my best. But at the same time, when I’m feeling like I felt today, I think that’s the key.”
[NEWSLETTER FORM]