After being forced to miss last year’s BNP Paribas Open with a right hip injury, Rafael Nadal is raring to go this year in Indian Wells.

The Spaniard is the second seed and will open his campaign against American wild card Jared Donaldson or Japanese qualifier Tatsuma Ito. Nadal said his second-round exit last week to Nick Kyrgios at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC is already off his mind and that he’s pleased with how his body has held up to start the season.

“I would have loved to win the Australian Open and Acapulco…but these things happen,” said Nadal. “I should not be unhappy after all I went through over the past four or five months.”

Nadal returned to action in January after sitting out four months with injuries to his abdomen, right knee and right ankle. Given his injury woes, he’s happy to simply be healthy and competing again.

“There are too many issues that have happened to my body over the past year-and-a-half, but I’ve managed it well to still be competitive and still be fighting for the most important events,” said Nadal. “This is an important part of the season for me…[so] that’s important for my mental health, too, to feel that I’m competitive when I’m ready to play.”

Nadal has enjoyed plenty of success at this event, having won twice (2007, 2012) and finished runner-up in 2011. While some people refer to this tournament as “the fifth Grand Slam,” Nadal said he believes the rich history of the event is worthy of being recognised on its own.

“This tournament is important enough to stand on its own name,” said Nadal. “I love not being in a big city and the calm we have out here in the desert. I love the views and the organisation here is one of the best.

There’s a crowd wherever Roger Federer plays and the BNP Paribas Open is no exception.

From his practises to simply walking around the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, he’s surrounded by fans offering well-wishes or asking for autographs. Having won this event five times (2004-2006, 2012, 2017) and in position to snatch the record he shares with Novak Djokovic by adding a sixth crown, it’s easy to understand why.

But while the 100-time ATP Tour singles champion has a celebrity status at this event, he doesn’t see himself that way.

“People always elevate superstar athletes to a status like we’re superhuman, but you get to meet them and realise he’s just another normal guy. It just happens that he does great in what he does,” said Federer. “Being perfect doesn’t exist. Everybody has their flaws and so do I. But if I can make the game more popular, be good for fans or have them enjoy the sport more through me, then that’s great.”

Federer is the fourth seed this year and is making his 18th main draw appearance at this event. Apart from undergoing knee surgery in 2016, he has remained free of major injuries for more than 20 years. Smart scheduling has played a crucial role in prolonging his career, but Federer has also made recovery efforts as much of a priority as his on-court practise sessions.

“The most important thing for any athlete is understanding your own body. Knowing what is pain and what is injury pain, what could result in an injury, being able to play through that many times…but then also knowing when to step off the gas and give yourself a break,” said Federer. “Then there’s having enough sleep, eating the right food, recovery, knowing the schedule…it all helps. At the end of the day, you need to have smart people around you who are educated in that way and you have to buy into that idea. Some of it is genetics, too, and then you still need luck.”

The Swiss star hasn’t had much chance to celebrate capturing his 100th ATP Tour title last week at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships (d. Tsitsipas). Although Federer has always been one to look ahead and will be eager to add to his ATP Tour title collection in the desert, he allowed himself the chance to assess the historic moment on the long-haul trip from Dubai to Indian Wells.

“What I like about [the 100th title] is that it gives some time to reflect on these great moments and great titles that are all important to me,” said Federer. “It’s an achievement I never thought I’d make and something I only started thinking about in the past nine months. When you get to No. 98, No. 99, you start to think it’d be a pity to retire without hitting 100. It was nice to get there on the first attempt in a final.”

Even though John Isner lost his opening-round match at last year’s BNP Paribas Open, the tournament proved to be the springboard for his career-best year in singles.

Eager for matches after a disappointing 2-6 start to his 2018 season in singles, Isner teamed with Jack Sock and took the doubles title without dropping a set. With an ATP Masters 1000 doubles title under his belt, the American headed to the Miami Open presented by Itau and promptly won his first ATP Masters 1000 singles title by defeating Alexander Zverev in the final.

“Coming into this tournament [last year], I had no results to lean on. But the doubles went my way and that meant everything for me,” said Isner. “I finally left a tournament feeling good about my game. Winning this event is a huge accomplishment and it was a good springboard for the rest of my 2018.”

Isner returns to Indian Wells this year as the eighth seed. From his doubles title last year to a singles runner-up showing in 2012 (l. to Federer), he’s created plenty of positive memories at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The American also readily admitted his results here have fluctuated and said he won’t be leaning on his past highlights.

“I won the last match I played here and not a lot of guys can say that,” joked Isner. “Everyone knows how tough this tournament is, though. I’ve tripped up in the first round and I’ve made it to the final. There’s a big delta in what I’m capable of doing here.”

To ensure he stays match tough, Isner is teaming with Sam Querrey in the doubles draw. They’ll face top seeds Pierre-Hugues Herbert/Nicolas Mahut in a blockbuster first-round clash. The American is hopeful more doubles success at this event will add confidence that carries into his singles game.

“Matches are matches. We all practise a lot, but you can’t emulate match play,” he said. “As everyone knows, my matches can be inherently close. Playing a lot of matches gets me tougher in those moments where it comes down to a couple of points here or there. If I’m not playing with much confidence, I can very easily lose a lot of close matches for a few weeks in a row. I think I’ve turned the corner on that this year, so we’ll see how it goes.”

Isner also has his family with him in the desert, including his wife Madison, and their six-month-old daugher, Hunter. Being content in his personal life has carried over to success in his professional life. After enjoying a career-best season at an age where many of his peers have retired, the 33-year-old said he has no plans to stop competing anytime soon.

“I want to play as long as I possibly can,” said Isner. “I see Roger Federer still doing what he’s doing at 37, with four kids, and he’s still one of the greatest of all time. Eventually, I won’t be playing this game anymore, but I’d like to do that on my own terms.”

After missing last year’s BNP Paribas Open with illness, Kei Nishikori returns to the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in fine form after a strong start to the 2019 ATP Tour season.

Seeded sixth at this year’s event, the Japanese No. 1 opened the year by snapping a nine-match losing streak in ATP Tour finals at the Brisbane International (d. Medvedev) and has maintained his strong start to the season with 12 wins from 15 matches to solidify his position inside the Top 10 in the ATP Rankings. With only 45 points to defend across the opening two ATP Masters 1000 events of the year in March, the 29-year-old is in a strong position to make a return to the Top 5 for the first time since 23 April 2017.

“[Brisbane was my] first time winning a tournament to start the year. I think that was big,” said Nishikori. “[I am] always happy to win a title. I think I am having a good, decent start [to the year]… These two tournaments [in Indian Wells and Miami] are very important for me… I hope I can do well.”

At this point last year, Nishikori was in the early stages of his comeback from a right wrist injury. The World No. 7 was forced to miss six months of ATP Tour action between August 2017 and February 2018, but has since managed to find great consistency in his performances. Despite an unfortunate quarter-final retirement against Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open, Nishikori was clear that he is in peak condition ahead of an exciting month in the United States.

“I feel very good,” said Nishikori. “[It was] unfortunate to retire in Australia, but I played a couple of long matches so I expected to have something. In the past couple of weeks, I [have been] feeling really well.”

After addressing his own fitness levels, Nishikori also took a moment to appreciate the fitness record of one of his greatest rivals. The 12-time tour-level titlist shared his thoughts on Roger Federer’s ability to keep his body in peak condition for the large majority of his career, while competing at the highest level. It’s an attribute which has surely played a major role in the Swiss being able to lift 100 tour-level trophies throughout his career.

“It is something incredible to see, how [often Roger] plays at a high level and does not have many injuries,” said Nishikori. “For sure, he works so much harder than everybody. You don’t see much, but I am sure he works really hard. The way he plays is very smooth. It doesn’t look like he puts any stress on his body when he plays any shots. I think that is the biggest [reason] he doesn’t get too many injuries.”

Despite missing the 2018 BNP Paribas Open, Japan was able to celebrate success 12 months ago at this event. Last year’s tournament will be remembered by many as the breakthrough event of Naomi Osaka, who powered through the women’s field to lift her first title. Since then, the Japanese star has soared to the top of the women’s game with back-to-back Grand Slam titles at the US Open and Australian Open.

With the weight of Japanese expectation partially lifted from his shoulders, Nishikori shared his thoughts on the emergence of the 21-year-old who enters a tour-level event for the first time as a defending champion this week.

“I am very surprised. I think everybody is surprised how [quickly Naomi] has become the World No. 1, winning two Grand Slams,” said Nishikori. “I can imagine it is not easy [for her] to adjust her mental [state]. Becoming No. 1 is something I have never had before, so I cannot tell how much she feels pressure, but I am sure she feels something now.

“If she stays strong, I am sure in time [she will adjust to this] being normal. I am sure she will handle it well because, for me, she has very good mental [strength]… I am sure she is going to be fine. [The pressure] will come some days, but hopefully she can enjoy this moment.”

The 2019 BNP Paribas Open ushers in the 30th year of ATP Masters 1000 tennis. The series, which debuted in 1990, features the best men’s tennis players at nine top tournaments on the ATP calendar. Champions at Masters 1000 events earn 1,000 ATP Rankings points.  

MASTERS 1000 TITLE LEADERS… 2019 marks the 30th year of ATP Masters 1000 tennis. There have been 66 different champions crowned in 261 events since the series began in 1990. Only six players have won more than 10 Masters 1000 titles. Rafael Nadal leads the way with 33 following a trio of Masters 1000 titles in 2018, while Novak Djokovic has 32.

MASTERS 1000 WINS LEADERS… Entering the 2019 BNP Paribas Open, Roger Federer leads Masters 1000 win leaders, but Rafael Nadal has a chance to overtake the Swiss with his run in Indian Wells. Stan Wawrinka is in position to enter the leaderboard and pass BNP Paribas Open Tournament Director Tommy Haas. Wawrinka has a 143-98 record at ATP Masters 1000 events with one title (2014 Monte-Carlo).

MAIDEN MASTERS: Six players have won their first Masters 1000 title over the past 14 series events:
Alexander Zverev (2017 Rome)
Grigor Dimitrov (2017 Cincinnati)
Jack Sock (2017 Paris)
Juan Martin del Potro (2018 Indian Wells)
John Isner (2018 Miami)
Karen Khachanov (2018 Paris).

In the 78 ATP Masters 1000 events prior to 2017 Rome, six players won their first Masters 1000 title:
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (2008 Paris)
Ivan Ljubicic (2010 Indian Wells)
Robin Soderling (2010 Paris)
David Ferrer (2012 Paris)
Stan Wawrinka (2014 Monte-Carlo)
Marin Cilic (2016 Cincinnati).

During the stretch from 2008 Madrid through 2017 Madrid, Novak Djokovic (26), Rafael Nadal (18), Andy Murray (13) and Roger Federer (12) combined to capture 69 of the 78 Masters 1000 titles (88.5%).