Tennis News

Tien moves behind Roddick on exclusive list…

Learner Tien reached a major milestone on Friday at the BNP Paribas Open, becoming the youngest American since Andy Roddick to notch 50 tour-level victories. The 20-year-old lefty defeated Adam Walton 7-6(3), 7-6(8) to move into second place on the leaderboard behind Roddick.

Roddick, the former No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, recorded his 50th tour-level win at the 2002 Australian Open at 19 years and four months. By securing his 50th victory at 20 years and three months, Tien now sits just behind Roddick on this exclusive list. Close friend Alex Michelsen ranks third, while Sam Querrey and 2022 Indian Wells champion Taylor Fritz round out the top five.

“It is great. I also saw I was two months younger than Alex. I think it is cool,” Tien told ATPTour.com when reflecting on the achievement. “I feel like it has flown by. I still remember my first win so vividly and how much that meant to me. Obviously, 50 is a pretty big benchmark and now I am pushing for 100.”

Youngest Americans to reach 50 tour-level wins (since 2000)

Tien’s rise has been swift and impressive. He claimed his maiden tour-level victory in August 2024 in Winston-Salem, defeating Tristan Schoolkate en route to the quarter-finals at the ATP 250. Since then, he captured his first ATP Tour trophy in Metz last November and followed it up by clinching the Next Gen ATP Finals title in Jeddah. He also has five Top 10 wins.

“I was in qualies and I was playing on some really small court in the back and there was barely anyone there,” Tien said, remembering his first win in Winston-Salem. “I think I lost the first set and then I ended up winning in three and then I ended up winning a couple of [main draw] matches.”

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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.

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The road starts here: Watch new ATP Challenger YouTube channel

The ATP Challenger YouTube channel is a new way to follow the stars of tomorrow.

Launched this week, the ATP Challenger page will showcase a range of content including match highlights, live streams, archived matches, features, engaging YouTube ‘Shorts’ and more.

The platform provides greater visibility of players making their rise in professional tennis and earning their breakthrough onto the ATP Tour — the heartbeat of the ATP Challenger circuit. With its extensive variety of content, the ATP Challenger channel will introduce a broader audience to the talent and stories emerging across the circuit.

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Zverev after latest Berrettini win: 'I feel different this year'

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.”

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.

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Svrcina remembers 16-year-old Sinner: 'You could definitely see the potential'

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.”

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.”

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Tom Brady jokes about Djokovic’s football throw: 'More confident than some on Sunday'

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.

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.

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Who has won the Indian Wells tennis title?

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

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'A fresh start' – Draper sports buzz cut for Indian Wells title defence

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.

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When will Sinner, Alcaraz, Djokovic play their first matches in Indian Wells?

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.

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'We should not have played' – how tennis was caught in Middle East conflict

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.

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