Even before it began in earnest, it had that special feel. But then, that is almost always the case at the BNP Paribas Open in the desert. Many sports events fade with time, backslide with age. Not at Indian Wells. The streets around the Indian Wells Tennis Garden were packed all day Tuesday. So were the parking lots. And the main draws were still filling out, with the women starting Wednesday and the men Thursday. Players scrambling to get into those main draws battled all over the grounds in qualifying rounds, most often in front of sizable, enthusiastic crowds. Who could blame the players? A spot in the first round, for either gender, is worth $16,425, and hoisting a championship trophy will enhance a bank account by $1,354,010. Advertisement Who could blame the enthusiasm of the spectators, who got in free? There were plenty of recognizable names competing in the qualifying, even several formerly ranked in the top 10. Anybody who is anybody in tennis is here, with the notable exception of men’s defending champion Juan Martin del Potro, who is out with an injury. Naomi Osaka won the 2018 women’s title, went on to win the title at the U.S. Open and this year’s Australian, and is here for more. This event is an abundance of riches. The top four men’s seeds offer 52 major titles, and that’s with No. 3 Alexander Zverev without one. No. 1 Novak Djokovic has 15, including this year’s Australian Open; No. 2 Rafael Nadal has 17 and No. 4 Roger Federer has the record at 20. Major titles aren’t as plentiful on the women’s side, but Serena Williams, seeded 10th, fills the gap with 23 of her own. The event also frames all this talent with spectacular ambience. It is not clear whether tennis was invented for the desert in March, or the other way around. The day featured barely swaying palm trees, temperatures in a comfortable high-60s range and a feeling that summer may finally be on its way. Tuesday night brought a new wrinkle, as well as a few sprinkles that threatened to spoil things. But the clouds moved on, a near sellout crowd of 7,441 moved into Stadium 2, and their $25 ticket purchase went to benefit a new event for local charities. The event was called the Eisenhower Cup, for the hospital that would be among the beneficiaries. It was also promoted as a night with “Rafa and Friends,” which meant the $25 ticket would bring a chance to see Nadal, among the greatest players of all time. He was joined by Stan Wawrinka, Marin Cilic, David Goffin, Taylor Fritz, Gael Monfils, Milos Raonic and Dominic Thiem. Pretty heady stuff, especially with 20 Grand Slam titles in the event — Nadal’s 17, Wawrinka’s two and Cilic’s one. It was a round-robin concoction they called a Tie-Break Ten, which meant the first player to ten points with a two-point margin would win. The winner didn’t seem to be a big deal, even though it was worth $150,000. The funds raised and the fun had on the court were meant to be a higher priority. Advertisement “I couldn’t say no,” Nadal said, when asked beforehand why he would go out there yet another time, when he probably had hours and hours ahead on the courts of Indian Wells. “It will be a good time, plus I love being at Indian Wells.” He will be seeking his fourth title here, and the topic got around to his second one, in 2009, when he played into the wee hours, surviving five match points against Argentina’s David Nalbandian and winning at 2 a.m. “That one was very emotional,” he said. “I remember it well, because it meant so much later. I went on to win the tournament.” He will turn 33 on June 3. Much like his friend and rival, Federer, who will turn 38 in August, Nadal is more frequently asked about how near the end is for his career. Advertisement “I hope it is not for a while,” he said, “but I feel fortunate. I have lots of things I can do and want to do. When it comes to an end, it will be a big change. It will take time to adjust. I know that. But I will be fine.” He also said his golf handicap is 1.5. One of his friends jumped into the conversation and said, “It should improve while he is here.” Take note, PGA. sports@latimes.com<doc-sep>Making his Masters 1000 debut at Indian Wells, a qualifier Prajnesh Gunneswaran is through to the third round following a 6-4, 6-7, 7-6 win over the 17th seed Nikoloz Basilashvili in two hours and 31 minutes. As a result suggests, nothing could separate them throughout the match but the Indian won 14 points more, playing better on the second serve (Nikoloz hit 11 double faults) and saving three out of five break points, securing three breaks from ten opportunities. Prajnesh claimed the opener with a break in game five, serving well and securing the set with a hold at love at 5-4. Basilashvili bounced back in set number two, winning it 8-6 in the tie break before trailing 5-3 in the decider after losing serve at love in game eight. Serving for the victory, Prajnesh got broken in the following game but he stayed calm, taking the tie break 7-4 to book the place in round three. Competing in only the eighth match of the season, Dominic Thiem defeated Jordan Thompson 6-4, 7-5 after a grueling an hour and 53 minutes. Focused on the pivotal points, the Austrian forged the gap after saving six out of seven break chances he played against, scoring three breaks to seal the deal in straight sets for the 50th Masters 1000 win. Dominic won the opening set with a good return game at 2-2 and they pushed each other to the limits in set number two, with no less than 13 deuces in game three! From 4-2 down, Jordan grabbed three games in a row to boost his chances, only to suffer a break in game 11 and allowing Thiem to clinch the win after saving a break point a few minutes later. The 3rd seed Alexander Zverev stayed on the court for just 58 minutes, leading 6-3, 2-0 when Martin Klizan was forced to retire due to an ankle injury. Alexander, who didn't feel well on the court too, lost serve once and he did enough on the return to stay in front until Martin decided to retire, notching his 55th Masters 1000 victory. The 13th seed Milos Raonic took down Sam Querrey 7-6, 6-4 in an hour and 44 minutes with a single break of serve, taking the tie break 7-1 and breaking Sam in the third game of the second set to bring it home and stay on the title chase. A lucky loser Miomir Kecmanovic replaced Kevin Anderson and he needed only an hour to dismiss Maximilian Marterer 6-3, 6-2 for his maiden Masters 1000 triumph. Miomir lost just nine points on serve and broke the German three times to control the scoreboard all the time and march towards the finish line, setting the third round clash against Laslo Djere.<doc-sep>Indian Wells prize money: How much cash is on offer to Federer, Nadal and Djokovic? When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Sometimes they'll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer. Our Privacy Notice explains more about how we use your data, and your rights. You can unsubscribe at any time. Sign up forfor news on the biggest players and tournaments Indian Wells gets underway today as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic aim to give their French Open preparations a boost. Federer (5), Djokovic (5) and Nadal (3) have all won the event multiple times in previous years - but how much cash could they win here in 2019? The total cash on offer at the BNP Paribas Open 2019 for the ATP players is £6,825,362 ($9,035,428), which is up from £6,022,453 ($7,972,535) from the previous year. If any of the trophy-winning trio is to drop out at the quarter-final stage they will head home with a reward of £137,472.<doc-sep>When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Sometimes they'll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer. Our Privacy Notice explains more about how we use your data, and your rights. You can unsubscribe at any time. Sign up forfor news on the biggest players and tournaments Indian Wells, also known as the BNP Paribas Open, will take place from March 4 until March 17, and the three Grand Slam giants will all be competing. Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will all join the tournament at the second round stage. Nadal and Djokovic will be situated at opposite ends of the draw as the top two seeds, with the latter winning in straight sets during their recent Australian Open final clash. The draw for the main tournament takes place on Tuesday March 5 at 11pm UK time.<doc-sep>
INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — Novak Djokovic beat Bjorn Fratangelo 7-6 (5), 6-2 to open his pursuit of a record sixth title at the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday. It was Djokovic’s 50th match win at the desert tournament, his highest total at any ATP Masters 1000 event. The world’s top-ranked player needed 1 1/2 hours to beat the American and improve to 11-1 on the season. Afterward, Djokovic went over to greet former No. 1 Pete Sampras, who sat courtside. Defending champion and world No. 1 Naomi Osaka also had a night match at Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Venus Williams outlasted No. 3 seed Petra Kvitova 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the second round, just her eighth match of the year. Kvitova served 10 aces and 10 double-faults in the 2 1/2-hour match. She became the highest seeded woman to lose so far. "She’s been playing so well this year. You never know what’s going to come off her racket," Williams said in an on-court interview. "I just loved the battle." Williams, a three-time semifinalist at Indian Wells, is the oldest woman in the tournament at 38. She’s seeking her 50th career title. Williams also needed three sets to beat Andrea Petkovic in the first round. "The crowd was behind me to get to match point," Williams said. Wimbledon champion Angelique Kerber dropped just two games in beating Yulia Putintseva 6-0, 6-2. Kerber broke serve to open the match on her way to winning the first 10 games in a row. Kerber, seeded eighth, converted 93 per cent of her first serves and moved on to a third-round match against qualifier Natalia Vikhlyantseva. "I was playing really aggressive," Kerber said. "Yeah, it’s good to start the tournament like that." Other seeded winners were: No. 9 Aryna Sabalenka, No. 11 Anastasija Sevastova, No. 21 Anett Kontaveit and No. 24 Lesia Tsurenko. Milos Raonic, Gael Monfils, Gilles Simon and Laslo Djere were seeded winners on the men’s side. There were several upsets on Day 4 of the combined ATP-WTA event. No. 9 Stefanos Tsitsipas, who lost to Roger Federer in both the Australian Open semifinals and the final in Dubai last week, was ousted by Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 6-2. Also losing on the men’s side were No. 11 Borna Coric and No. 23 Alex de Minaur. In the women’s draw, No. 17 Madison Keys, No. 26 Carla Suarez Navarro, No. 28 Donna Vekic and No. 30 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova lost.