When is Indian Wells 2021? Date of WTA 1000 tennis tournament, and Emma Raducanu wildcard entry explained

The 2021 BNP Paribas Open is set to return to Indian Wells after being postponed in March due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Britain’s rising tennis star Emma Raducanu, is set to return to the court for the first time at Indian Wells since taking the US Open by storm, winning her first Grand Slam without losing a single set.

In September 2021, Raducanu entered the history books for becoming the first ever qualifier in the Open Era to win a Grand Slam singles title. She is also the first British woman to win a Grand Slam singles title since Virginia Wade won the 1977 Wimbledon Championships.

This year marks the 47th edition of the men’s BNP Paribas Open and the 32nd of the women’s, and will be classified as an ATP Tour Masters 1000 event on the ATP Tour 2021 as well as a WTA 1000 event on the 2021 WTA Tour

When is the Indian Wells tournament?

The tournament will take place from Monday 4 October 2021 through to Sunday 17 October 2021.

The qualifying rounds are played from 4 October to 6 October followed by the four rounds which are played between 7 October and 13 October.

The quarter-finals take place on 14 and 15 October, and the semi-finals are played on 15 and 16 October.

The Indian Wells finals will be held on Sunday 17 October.

Where is Indian Wells?

Indian Wells is in California, U.S.A. and the event takes place at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden on outdoor hard courts.

Is Emma Raducanu playing at Indian Wells?

British teen Raducanu has been granted a wildcard for the California tournament.

Despite ranking at 22 - well within the required rankings for immediate qualification - the cut off to automatically qualify for the Open was before Raducanu’s incredible New York feat when she was outside of the top 100.

Without the wildcard, the US Open champion would have to have gone through the qualifying stages in order to compete.

Raducanu has also entered tournaments in Russia and Romania in October and could still qualify for the year-end WTA Finals in Guadalajara.

Is Wimbledon champion Ashleigh Barty playing at Indian Wells 2021?

The news of Radacanu’s entry to the BNP Paribas Open comes along with the news that Naomi Osaka, Ashleigh Barty and Serena Williams have all announced that they will not compete in this year’s tournament.

After Osaka’s early exit from the US Open, the 23-year-old Japanese player announced she would be taking an indefinite break from tennis.

World Number One, Barty, has not competed since her shock US Open third-round defeat by Shelby Rogers and her decision to withdraw from Indian Wells makes it increasingly likely that her successful season is over.

With both Osaka and Barty out of the running, Aryna Sabalenka from Belarus is now in position to be the top seed in the women’s draw.

Will Novak Djokavic play at Indian Wells?

Novak Djokavic will also sit out of this year’s tournament in the desert along with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

The 34-year-old number one has not played since missing out on the chance to win a record 21st Grand Slam at this year’s US Open.

On Twitter, Djokavic said “I am sorry I won’t get to see my fans in Indian Wells and play in the desert, my favourite place to go. I hope to see you next year!”

His withdrawal means that there will be a first-time winner on the men’s side. As well as Federer and Nadal’s omission, Juan Martin del Potro and defending champion Dominic Thiem are the only other active players to have won in Indian Wells and both are out due to injuries.

In the running for the men’s title is US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Alexander Zverev, and Stefanos Tsitsipas.

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