Indian Wells draw ceremony includes Djokovic, while Nadal lands in Medvedev half

Indian Wells 2022 | The men’s draw | Order of play

There is little doubt that Novak Djokovic will be unable to play the upcoming BNP Paribas Open. Under current CDC guidelines in the United States, Djokovic is not allowed to enter the country as an unvaccinated foreigner. However, the 34-year-old has not yet officially withdrawn from the season’s first Masters 1000 event.

As a result, Djokovic found himself at the bottom of the bracket as the No. 2 seed when the draw ceremony was held on Tuesday afternoon at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.

The tournament did not waste any time touching on the situation. In fact, it released a statement immediately after Djokovic’s name was placed in the draw while the ceremony was still underway.

Indian Walls officials : ‘We are currently in communication with his team’

“Novak Djokovic is on the tournament entry list, and therefore is placed into the draw today,” the statement read. “We are currently in communication with his team; however, it has not been determined if he will participate in the event by getting CDC approval to enter the country. We will provide updates in the future as we learn more.”

As it stands on Tuesday, Djokovic is in the field of 96 and would begin his bid for a sixth Indian Wells title against either David Goffin or Jordan Thompson. Andy Murray is a possible third-round opponent for the second-ranked Serb. In addition to potential benefiting Goffin or Thompson and Murray, Djokovic’s withdrawal could also aid the chances of Andrey Rublev, Hubert Hurkacz, Diego Schwartzman, Aslan Karatsev, and John Isner. All of those players are in Djokovic’s section of the draw.

Also in the bottom half are Alexader Zverev, Matteo Berrettini, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Pablo Carreno Busta, Taylor Fritz, and Marin Cilic. Zverev avoided suspension from the ATP for his recent outburst in Acapulco, so he is able to continue playing. But it may not be easy for him with that draw, as Auger-Aliassime, Fritz, and Cilic are all in stellar form. Zverev’s opener will come against either Grigor Dimitrov or Tommy Paul – not an easy task, to be sure.

Top-half is even more jam-packed with Medvedev, Nadal and Tsitsipas

Regardless of Djokovic’s status, the top-half is even more jam-packed. It is home to Daniil Medvedev, Rafael Nadal, and Stefanos Tsitsipas. A red-hot Carlos Alcaraz is there, too. Medvedev could go up against Alcaraz in the fourth round and arch rival Tsitsipas in the quarterfinals before he would even get a rematch of the Australian Open final against Nadal in the Indian Wells semis.

Nadal’s quarter includes Casper Ruud, Jannik Sinner, Denis Shapovalov, and Reilly Opelka. The 21-time Grand Slam champion will kick off his campaign against either Sebastian Korda or a qualifier.

The men’s main draw gets started on Thursday after the women begin their tournament on Wednesday.

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