By Alberto Amalfi | @Tennis_Now | Wednesday, February 7, 2024
Novak Djokovic is bringing his skills back to Tennis Paradise next month.
After a five-year hiatus, World No. 1 Djokovic will return to Indian Wells playing for an unprecedented sixth title.
The Grand Slam king was unable to play the BNP Paribas Open in recent years due to U.S. Coronavirus policy preventing the unvaccinated Serbian superstar from entry into America.
The entry list for the 2024 BNP Paribas Open, to be held March 3-17 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, was issued today with 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic and fellow world No. 1 Iga Swiatek both committed to competing.
The five-time champion (2008, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016) owns a tournament-record 20 consecutive match wins from his three-peat in 2014-2016. Djokovic’s last appearance at Indian Wells in 2019 ended with a third round loss to German veteran Philipp Kohlschreiber.
Four-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek will play for her second career Indian Wells title (2022) after reaching the semifinal last year.
Reigning BNP Paribas Open champions Carlos Alcaraz (World No. 2) and Elena Rybakina (World No. 5) will return to Tennis Paradise looking to reclaim the glory of last year’s title runs and find their strides after both fell in the Australian Open earlier than expected. Alcaraz wowed crowds in the desert last year becoming the first man to win at Indian Wells without dropping a set since Roger Federer in 2017, while Rybakina’s title cemented her place among the top of the WTA as she took down No. 1 Swiatek and No. 2 Sabalenka in back-to-back matches.
Joining them in the desert will be fan favorite and three-time Indian Wells champion Rafael Nadal (2007, 2009, 2013), who will make his return to Tennis Paradise after missing the 2023 event with injury. The 22-time Grand Slam champion will look to jumpstart his season after an injury kept him out of the Australian Open earlier this year.
2024 Australian Open champions Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka will arrive in the desert in peak form hoping to continue their strong starts to the 2024 season. World No. 4 Sinner fared well last year, bowing out to eventual champion Alcaraz in the semifinal. On the WTA side, World No. 2 Sabalenka rolls into Indian Wells as arguably the player to beat fresh off her second major win and back-to-back championships at the Australian Open. Sabalenka will aim to add a first BNP Paribas Open title to her growing trophy case this March after falling just short in 2023 with a loss in the final.
Southern California native Taylor Fritz will once again lead the charge of top-ranked American ATP talent. Fritz broke the title drought in the desert for American men in 2022 with a dream title run that included a thrilling straight-sets victory over Nadal in the final.
Top 5 talents Coco Gauff (World No. 3) and Jessica Pegula (World No. 4) will both vie to become the first American WTA champion in nearly two decades. The 2023 US Open Champion Gauff will look to build upon her career-best result at Indian Wells when she reached the quarterfinal last year, while the six-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist Pegula will be looking to capture a signature title on home soil.
Other top names to watch will include six-time Grand Slam finalist and 2023 BNP Paribas Open runner-up Daniil Medvedev, as well others in the ATP Top 10, including Andrey Rublev, Alexander Zverev, Holger Rune, Hubert Hurkacz and two-time Grand Slam finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas. Three-time Slam winner and two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Andy Murray will also make his sixteenth appearance in Tennis Paradise.
On the WTA side, Top 10 star and breakout talent Qinwen Zheng (World No. 7) will look to keep her hot run of form after a dream run to the 2024 Australian Open final, while World No. 9 Maria Sakkari will also be looking for her breakthrough in the desert after runs to the semifinal and final the last two years, respectively. Tunisian superstar and two-time Wimbledon finalist Ons Jabeur, 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova and 2023 Roland-Garros finalist Karolina Muchova are also Top 10 players searching for their first titles at Indian Wells.
Other former Indian Wells champions to look out for are 2021 victors Paula Badosa and World No. 19 Cameron Norrie, as well as two-time champion and World No. 33 Victoria Azarenka (2012, 2016). Four-time Grand Slam winner and 2018 BNP Paribas Open champion Naomi Osaka and three-time Slam champion and 2019 finalist Angelique Kerber will both return to Tennis Paradise for the first time since 2022 following maternity leave.
WTA Top 50 Americans to look out for in the desert will include former US Open finalist Madison Keys, 2021 NCAA champion and rising star Emma Navarro, 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens, and 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin. 22-year-old Amanda Anisimova – who reached the fourth round in Melbourne in her return to Tour after seven months away from the game – will also be a player to watch.
2023 BNP Paribas Open semifinalist Frances Tiafoe, 2023 Australian Open semifinalist Tommy Paul and 2023 US Open semifinalist Ben Shelton will be eyeing breakout moments of their own, while No. 33 Christopher Eubanks, No. 34 Sebastian Korda and No. 48 Mackenzie McDonald round out the Top 50 for the American men in the desert.
The remaining spots in the 2024 BNP Paribas Open draws will be filled by the winners of the Qualifying Tournament from March 3-5 as well as wild card recipients to be announced in the coming weeks.
Photo credit: Dan Huerlimann/Beelde Images
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