Djokovic, Nadal headline entry list for upcoming Indian Wells Masters

Spring time is approaching, and with it comes the sunshine double on the ATP and WTA Tours. First up is the BNP Paribas Masters in Indian Wells, which precedes the Miami Open.

Scheduled for its normal spot in early March after being postponed until October in 2021, the Indian Wells Masters revealed its player entry list on Thursday. On the men’s side, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal currently lead the field along with Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Matteo Berrettini, and Andrey Rublev.

You have to go all the way down to No. 30 of the current rankings–where Roger Federer resides–to find the first man who is not on the entry list.

The other two members of the Big 3 are in a bit of doubt even though they are currently in the lineup. When the Australian Open began, Djokovic was infamously unvaccinated–as basically the whole world found out. The top-ranked Serb got a medical exemption from the tournament, but the Australian government stepped in and revoked his visa. Unless Djokovic is now vaccinated or gets the vaccine prior to Indian Wells, he will require another exemption if he wants to play. Nadal capitalized on the opportunity and famously captured his 21st major title at Melbourne Park for his second Aussie Open triumph and completion of the double-career Grand Slam. It remains to be seen how much time the 35-year-old Spaniard wants to take off or how willing he is to put his body through the rigors of hard-court tennis.

Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer were all absent from the Indian Wells draw amidst the unusual circumstances of 2021. Held after the U.S. Open last year, the 1000-point tournament unsurprisingly featured way more upsets than usual. Cameron Norrie captured by far the biggest title of his career, beating Nikoloz Basilashvili in the final. The other semifinalists were Grigor Dimitrov and Taylor Fritz.

On the women’s side, Ashleigh Barty will be bidding for her first Indian Wells title after being among the contingent that skipped it last season. Paula Badosa was the surprise champion, and–like Norrie–she will be back to defend her title.