Novak Djokovic made a winning return to the desert, beating Aleksandar Vukic 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 on Saturday in his first match at the BNP Paribas Open in five years.
The 24-time Grand Slam singles champion joined Rafael Nadal as the only players to win 400 matches in ATP Masters 1000 series events. The top-ranked Djokovic is a five-time champion at Indian Wells, tied with Roger Federer for most by a male, but hadn’t played in the event since 2019.”Five years is quite a long time for a professional tennis player, but at the same time playing here the last time in 2019 felt like yesterday,” Djokovic said. “I connected with the crowd and everyone I haven’t seen in five years very quickly”
Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka also won – barely – rallying to win their opening matches in third-set tiebreakers.
Gauff edged Clara Burel 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4). The U.S. Open women’s champion trailed 4-0 and then 5-2 in the third set, leaving her a game away from becoming the second top American upset by Burel this year. The No. 47-ranked player from France beat No. 5 Jessica Pegula in the second round of the Australian Open.
