Novak Djokovic faces a tough task in trying to become the first man in history to win a sixth title in Indian wells this year.
Djokovic, who hasn’t won the title since 2016, has been drawn in the same section as reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz and could begin his campaign with a showdown against Nick Kyrgios in what would be a repeat of the 2022 Wimbledon final. Kyrgios enters the draw with the use of his protected ranking but there is uncertainty about what form he is in after recently being sidelined by another injury setback due to an abdominal issue. He will play a qualifier in his opening match with the winner then facing Djokovic.
The draw doesn’t get any easier for the Serbian with a series of potentially tricky opponents in his section. In the third round, he could play Matteo Berrettini who recently beat him in Doha, or Alejandro Davidovich Fokina who has already reached two ATP Finals this year. Then he could play Alex de Minaur in the last 16 followed by a clash against Alcaraz in the quarter-finals.
Djokovic will be making his 16th appearance in Indian Wells. However, he has only played in one out of the last four editions of the event which was last year when he reached the third round.
Seeking a third consecutive title in the desert, Alcaraz could face a resurgent Denis Shapovalov in the third round if they both win their opening matches. Shpovalov, a former world No.10, recently stunned a trio of top 10 players en route to winning the Dallas Open. More recently, he reached the semi-finals in Alcapulco before losing to Davidovich Fokina.
Alcaraz is on a 12-match winning streak in Indian Wells and has only dropped two sets. He aims to join Djokovic and Roger Federer as the only players to have won the tournament three times in a row.
Top seed Alexander Zverev aims to become only the second German man to win the event after Boris Becker and the first to do so since it was categorized as a Masters 1000 in 1990. The world No.2 has enjoyed limited success at the tournament so far in his career, reaching the quarter-final stage in only two out of eight appearances. Zverev will open up against either Tallon Griekspoor or Miomir Kecmanovic who has both recorded wins over top 20 players this year. He is on a collision course with Frances Tuafoe in the fourth round followed by Stefanos Tsitsipas in the last eight.
2024 runner-up Daniil Medvedev could face fourth seed Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals if everything goes to plan for both players. The Russian will be hoping for another deep run in the draw and is defending 650 points. This is more than three times the amount of points that Ruud (200) will be defending.
As for the first round which features only unseeded players, Brazillian rising star Joao Fonseca will play Great Britain’s Jacob Fearnley and will then face another Brit, Jack Draper, if he wins. The 18-year-old has already achieved a series of career milestones in 2025, including his first win over top 10 player (Andrey Rublev) at the Australian Open and claiming his first ATP trophy at the Argentina Open.
Meanwhile, American youngster Learner Tien opens up against Mariano Navone with the winner playing 11th seed Ben Shelton. Other players who will be playing in the opening round include Gael Monfils, Jenson Brooksby, Jakub Mensik, Kei Nishikori and Cameron Norrie.
