Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the upcoming Miami Open due to a right shoulder injury, meaning the Serbian is set to drop out of the world’s top three.
The 38-year-old last featured in a gruelling three-set defeat against Jack Draper in the fourth round of Indian Wells.
He appeared physically exhausted by the conclusion of that two-and-a-half-hour encounter with the defending champion.
This latest physical setback ensures the six-time tournament winner will miss the second half of tennis’ prestigious ‘Sunshine Double’.
Ranking slide and Draper defeat
Failing to defend the significant ranking points earned from his run to last year’s final guarantees a slide down the global standings.
Germany’s Alexander Zverev is now in prime position to overtake the former world number one after advancing to the Indian Wells semi-finals.
Reflecting on his recent on-court struggles in California, the veteran admitted his frustration.
“[I have] a bitter feeling right now, losing a match like this,”
Novak Djokovic
“But proud of myself for fighting and really giving it all on the court. That’s for sure.”
“I lost to a great player, and it was really such an even match throughout the entire two-and-a-half hours.”
Focus shifting to European clay
The Belgrade native has deliberately played a heavily reduced schedule in recent years to ensure peak condition for Grand Slams.
Prior to his recent Californian appearance, the 24-time major champion had not competed since losing the Australian Open final to Carlos Alcaraz in January.
His absence from the Miami main draw, which commences on Wednesday 18 March, points towards a return to action at the Monte-Carlo Masters in early April.
Last year in Florida, the legendary right-hander was narrowly beaten in the title-decider by Czech youngster Jakub Mensik.
World number two Jannik Sinner produced a hard-court masterclass to defeat Alexander Zverev 6-2 6-4 and reach his maiden Indian Wells final.
The 24-year-old needed just one hour and 23 minutes to dispatch his German opponent in the Californian desert.
Victory keeps the Italian on course to become only the third man, after Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, to capture all six ATP Masters 1000 titles on this surface.
Frustrations banished in straight sets
Prior to this tournament, the current world number two had endured a surprisingly frustrating start to the 2026 season without reaching a single final.
However, that sluggish form was emphatically banished during an opening set where the mental and physical damage was inflicted early.
Zverev struggled significantly with his service rhythm, allowing his lightning-fast opponent to win six out of eight points on the second serve.
Dominant display of precision
The 24-year-old hard-court specialist dropped a mere four points on his own serve during a heavily one-sided first set.
Although the 28-year-old from Hamburg stood firm to save three break points early in the second set, he was ultimately broken in the seventh game.
From there, the remainder of the match stayed comfortably on serve as the victor closed out the contest with clinical precision.
Alcaraz or Medvedev await
Attention now turns to Sunday’s showpiece, where either world number one Carlos Alcaraz or Russian star Daniil Medvedev will provide the final hurdle.
Reflecting on his dominant display, the victorious finalist highlighted his aggressive baseline approach as a crucial factor.
It was a great performance – very solid from the back of the court.
I tried to go for shots and that felt like one of the keys. He has a huge serve so I tried to mix it up.
From my side I was very precise and it was a solid performance.
I thought the match would be more physical but when both serve well it’s difficult to get into a rhythm with short points.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka will face Elena Rybakina in the Indian Wells final after both secured straight-set semi-final victories in California.
The Belarusian top seed powered past Czech 21-year-old Linda Noskova 6-3 6-4 to reach the showpiece event for the third time in four years.
Meanwhile, two-time Grand Slam champion Rybakina overcame Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina 7-5 6-4 to keep her hopes of a second desert crown alive.
Australian Open rematch awaits
Sunday’s title decider offers a swift opportunity for revenge following the pair’s high-stakes clash at the Australian Open in January.
The Kazakh star emerged victorious in Melbourne, handing her fierce rival the only defeat of an otherwise flawless 16-match start to the season.
Victory this weekend would secure a long-awaited maiden Indian Wells title for the world’s highest-ranked player.
“It feels great, I’ve lost a couple of finals here, so I’ll make sure that I’m more than ready on Sunday,” Sabalenka said.
“I’ll bring my best tennis and this is the year.”
Dominant serving proves decisive
Early aggression allowed the 25-year-old to establish a quick 5-1 lead over Noskova before briefly dropping serve during the opening set.
However, the formidable baseliner quickly regrouped with an ace, before a solitary break in the second set confirmed her progression into a 14th career WTA 1000 final.
“Serve was the biggest thing in this match,” added the dominant right-hander.
In the second semi-final, Svitolina started strongly by firing four aces during a tightly contested opening set.
Unforced errors eventually derailed the Ukrainian’s challenge, allowing her opponent to dictate the baseline exchanges and surge into an unassailable 4-0 lead in the second set.
“I’m going to fight as much as I can. Hopefully it’s going to be a great match,” Rybakina concluded ahead of the impending final.
Alexander Zverev has become only the fifth player in history to reach the semi-finals of all nine ATP Masters 1000 tournaments after defeating Arthur Fils at Indian Wells.
The German fourth seed claimed a confident 6-2 6-3 victory over the Frenchman to advance to the last four of the California-based event for the very first time.
By completing his set of Masters semi-final appearances, he joins a highly exclusive club featuring only Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.
“It’s very special to be one of five players in history to ever do it,” Zverev said.
“For sure, yeah, it’s something that I’m very proud of.”
Sinner awaits in daunting semi-final clash
Despite claiming titles at five of the nine prestigious Masters events, the world number four has never managed to secure a Grand Slam crown.
He will now face a difficult task to reach the Indian Wells final, needing to break a five-match losing streak against Jannik Sinner.
The reigning Wimbledon champion sealed his own spot in the semi-finals with a rapid 66-minute 6-1 6-2 victory over American Learner Tien.
The Italian is bidding for his first title of the 2026 season following recent exits at the Australian Open and Qatar Open.
Sabalenka survives tough Mboko test
In the women’s draw, world number one Aryna Sabalenka kept her hopes of a maiden Indian Wells title alive by holding off Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko.
The Belarusian edged a tight opening set before securing a hard-fought 7-6 (7-0) 6-4 victory over the resilient 19-year-old.
“A future star, a future Grand Slam champion, no doubt about that,” Sabalenka said of her opponent.
“It’s incredible to see these young girls these days, how brave they are. They go out there, they go after their shots, they’re aggressive, they’re fighting.”
The two-time Indian Wells runner-up will next face 14th seed Linda Noskova for a place in the final.
The Czech player ended Australian qualifier Talia Gibson’s remarkable run with a battling 6-2 4-6 6-2 win.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka has advanced to the semi-finals at Indian Wells after overcoming a stern challenge from Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko to win 7-6 (7-0) 6-4.
The Belarusian star was forced to dig deep during a highly competitive first set against the 19-year-old sensation.
Her young opponent produced powerful baseline shots to push the top seed into a tie-break before the momentum definitively shifted.
Sabalenka finds extra gear in tie-break
Elevating her performance under pressure, the two-time Australian Open champion secured the crucial tie-break without dropping a single point.
It marked the first time in her illustrious professional career that she has won a tie-break to love.
An early break in the second set put the top-ranked player in complete control of the hard-court quarter-final.
Despite a determined fightback across the net, she served out the match without facing a single break of serve.
‘Future Grand Slam champion’
A victory for the rising Canadian star would have secured a historic milestone as her fifth top-10 win of the calendar year.
Following the hard-fought victory, the tournament favourite offered glowing praise for the teenager’s fearless approach.
“She is definitely a future Grand Slam champion.”
“It’s incredible to see how brave these young girls are these days. They go out there and go after their shots. They’re aggressive and they fight. It’s incredible to see.”
“I’m happy with the win, even though a couple of things weren’t really working well today. I still managed to win though. I don’t think she broke me.”
Zverev cruises past Fils
In the men’s draw, Alexander Zverev safely secured his spot in the semi-finals with a comfortable straight-sets victory over Arthur Fils.
The German world-class competitor dictated play from the baseline to dispatch the Frenchman 6-2 6-3.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka has reached the Indian Wells quarter-finals after a dominant 6-2 6-4 straight-sets victory over 16th seed Naomi Osaka on Tuesday.
The Belarusian top seed extended her flawless run in the California desert, where she is yet to drop a single set in the tournament.
It was the first meeting between the two players since the 2018 US Open, a match the Japanese star won en route to claiming her maiden major title.
Early dominance sets the tone
Osaka began the contest confidently with a strong opening service game, but soon succumbed to a brief dip in form.
Capitalising on two double faults from her opponent, the reigning world number one broke serve early to establish a 2-1 lead.
She then tightened her grip on the opening set with a barrage of powerful backhands, serving it out comfortably with a clinical ace.
Decisive break secures straight-sets win
Although the second set started with a series of solid holds, the formidable Belarusian once again used her devastating firepower to take control.
A crucial break in the sixth game secured a 4-2 advantage, allowing her to confidently close out the match and secure her quarter-final berth.
Speaking after the match, the victorious top seed expressed her satisfaction at overturning the result of their previous encounter.
Renewed rivalry and future prospects
“Yeah that’s crazy, for so many years we only played once, but I’m pretty sure we are playing many more matches now she’s coming back playing great tennis.”
“I’m happy that I put so much pressure on her today, that I brought variety to the court.”
Last year’s runner-up will now continue her quest for a first Indian Wells title against either 19-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko or American Amanda Anisimova.
Britain’s Sonay Kartal overcame a back injury and a one-set deficit to stun former Australian Open champion Madison Keys and reach the fourth round at Indian Wells.
The 24-year-old dropped the opening set before rallying to secure a 2-6 6-2 6-3 victory over the American 15th seed in just under two hours.
She revealed she was still struggling with a physical issue that previously forced a medical timeout during her second-round triumph against Emma Navarro.
“At times in this match I was in discomfort with my back, so it’s a match like today which shows the fighter in me.”
Speaking to BBC Sport, the confident British number two declared that she feels capable of beating anyone on any given day in California.
Historic milestone in California
With this impressive turnaround, the world number 54 becomes the first British woman to reach the fourth round at the prestigious WTA 1000 tournament twice.
Her run to the same stage last year served as a breakthrough moment, propelling the rising star to a career-high ranking of 44 earlier in 2025.
The resilient right-hander must now prioritise her recovery before facing reigning Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina in the last 16.
“I didn’t really practise yesterday so I gave it as much recovery as I could, so I think now it’s about getting recovered and doing the same exact thing to get back on the court in the next couple of days.”
Kartal admitted the ongoing back ailment remains a significant hindrance heading into the crucial next phase of the competition.
Defending champion Andreeva exits
Elsewhere in the desert, world number 44 Katerina Siniakova produced another major upset by eliminating defending champion Mirra Andreeva.
The Czech navigated a gruelling two-hour and 48-minute battle to defeat the Russian eighth seed 4-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-3.
Third seed Rybakina secured her upcoming spot against Kartal following a hard-fought straight-sets victory over Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk.
World number two Iga Swiatek also advanced after overcoming Maria Sakkari, while American fifth seed Jessica Pegula fought back to defeat Jelena Ostapenko.
Defending champion Jack Draper has advanced to the fourth round at Indian Wells by defeating Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo 6-1 7-5 to set up a clash with Novak Djokovic.
The 24-year-old Briton cruised through the opening set before facing a much stiffer challenge from the 19th seed in the second.
Cerundolo threatened to force a decider after breaking serve to take a 5-4 lead.
However, the South American faltered when attempting to serve out the set, allowing his opponent to seize back control.
The world number 14 broke back immediately, survived a precarious 15-40 deficit in the following game, and broke once more to secure his first career victory over Cerundolo.
Djokovic awaits as returning star sheds rust
His reward for overcoming the tricky clay-court specialist is a formidable meeting with third seed Djokovic on Wednesday.
The five-time tournament winner booked his spot by dispatching American Aleksandar Kovacevic in three sets.
Draper is currently navigating his return to the tour following an eight-month hiatus caused by severe bone bruising in his serving arm.
Prior to arriving in California, the title holder had managed just two ATP-level appearances since the latter half of 2025.
Despite showing understandable signs of rust in a three-set opening victory against Roberto Bautista Agut, his clinical edge was entirely evident against Cerundolo.
Norrie applies pressure in rankings battle
The reigning champion entered the prestigious tournament knowing an early exit could result in a steep drop out of the world’s top 30.
He also faces intense competition to retain his status as the British number one.
Former Indian Wells winner Cameron Norrie ensured he remains firmly in that race with an impressive 6-4 6-4 victory over eighth seed Alex de Minaur.
If Norrie manages to progress a round further in the draw than his compatriot, he will reclaim the top national ranking.