The BNP Paribas Open draw took place on Monday, with the top players in the world about to descend upon Indian Wells for the start of this year’s Sunshine Double.
22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal will face fellow Milos Raonic in the first round of Indian Wells on Thursday night. But the unseeded three-time champion then could face a tough second-round clash with world No 5 Holger Rune. Playing his second tournament of the season and possibly his last hard court event until the summer, Rafa could face Taylor Fritz in a rematch of the 2022 final if both reach the fourth round.
Projected quarterfinals:
- Novak Djokovic (1) vs Hubert Hurkacz (8)
- Daniil Medvedev (4) vs Holgar Rune (7)
- Andrey Rublev (5) vs Jannik Sinner (3)
- Alexander Zverev (6) vs Carlos Alcaraz (2)
Rafa’s potential route to the final:
- 1st round: Milos Raonic
- 2nd round: Holger Rune
- 3rd round: Lorenzo Musetti
- 4th round: Taylor Fritz
- Quarter-final: Daniil Medvedev
- Semi-final: Novak Djokovic
- Final: Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner
Rafa is a three-time Indian Wells singles champion and two-time doubles title holder alongside coach Marc Lopez.
Good luck, Rafa! Vamos!
Happy to see you again on the court dear Rafa. Wishing you the very best for the tournament and a Happy and healthy year ahead. Lots of love and loads and loads of good health. God bless you.
I think Rafa has a shot if he serves well and takes the return early .
Vamos Rafa!💪❤️
Even that first match is a killer. If he wins that the match against Rune seems like a bit too much to ask at this point.
Good luck and Vamos Rafa❤️
Date and time please. Go Rafa!
Hi David,
March 7 (Thursday), we don’t know the exact time yet, but as we stated in the article, it will be an evening session.
We will post the exact time as soon as we find out.
Rafa will play the 6pm PT match on Thursday in stadium 1 against Raonic.
11 AM tomorrow March 6th.. Milos Raonic …