Men’s matches are officially shorter in Indian Wells this year
The stats back up the feeling – also held by players – that conditions in Indian Wells are faster this year
Icon SMI / Panoramic
Watching the matches over the first 10 days of the BNP Paribas Open, it’s been obvious that the court speed is faster than in previous years.
Organisers have yet to confirm what, if anything, they did to make this happen but players are saying conditions are faster, even if the balls seem to be cutting up after a couple of games.
One way to judge it is to look at the length of matches. TennisViz have been looking at them and so far, the stats back up the eye and the feeling of the players. In this year’s event, matches are lasting four minutes less than last year, and seven minutes less than two years ago.
Length of ATP matches IN Indian Wells
2024: 1 hour, 38 minutes
2023: 1 hour, 42 minutes
2022: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Now there can be other reasons for shorter matches. Perhaps the draw throws up one-sided contests but in a Masters 1000, that’s less likely because the draw is so stacked.
That average may creep up over the last few days of the event but we’ve already seen a few epics, including the Gael Monfils-Cam Norrie match, so if anything, perhaps the matches will become even shorter when it’s all completed.
