Indian Wells 2024 men's singles draw: Biggest winner and loser ft. Rafael Nadal | BNP Paribas Open

All the top players in the men's draw have arrived at the BNP Paribas Open 2024, also known as the Indian Wells Masters.

The likes of Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Daniil Medvedev will participate in the Masters 1000 event. 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal will also enter the main draw thanks to his protected ranking and make his second appearance of the year on the men's tour.

The qualification rounds have already begun and the main draw action is set to kick off on March 7.

With the men's draw announced on Monday night, we will analyze the players' chances and take a look at the biggest winner and loser from the men's singles draw at the BNP Paribas Open 2024.

Three-time champion Rafael Nadal handed a tough task at the BNP Paribas Open

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Rafael Nadal will enter the BNP Paribas Open on the back of a quarterfinal appearance at the Brisbane International. He put up a promising performance on his return from injury and will be raring to go again at the Masters 1000 event in California.

Nadal is in the top half of the men's draw at the BNP Paribas Open, which does not include Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. He will begin his campaign against former World No. 3 Milos Raonic and if he manages to make a favorable start, resilient Dane Holger Rune is most likely to meet him in the second round.

The draw only gets tougher for Nadal as in-form players such as Sebastian Baez, Taylor Fritz, Daniil Medvedev, and Grigor Dimitrov could face him en route to the semifinals. To make things even tougher, top-seed Novak Djokovic stands in his path in the last four.

With just one tournament appearance on the main tour this year and top-notch physical commitment required against top-quality players in his draw, Nadal has been handed a challenging task at the BNP Paribas Open in 2024.

Novak Djokovic only needs to get past two top-10 players until the semifinals

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On the contrary, top seed Novak Djokovic will be fancying his chances of making a deep run at the BNP Paribas Open. He will enter the event on the back of an upsetting semifinal loss at the Australian Open and will be keen to make amends in California.

Djokovic is also included in the top half of the men's draw. The two major obstacles that stand in his way are World No. 9 Casper Ruud and World No. 8 Hubert Hurkacz.

Talented players such as Nuno Borges, Arthur Fils, and Tommy Paul could also push him to the limits, but it is most likely that the World No. 1 edges past his opponents until the last four, where he could potentially square off against Daniil Medvedev, Rafael Nadal, Grigor Dimitrov or Taylor Fritz.

Djokovic will begin his campaign in the second round due to ranking superiority. He will square off against Aleksandar Kovacevic, Aleksandar Vukic, or Zhizhen Zhang.

Honorable mention: Daniil Medvedev has a tricky draw at BNP Paribas Open 2024

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Russian No. 1 Daniil Medvedev has been handed a tricky draw at BNP Paribas Open 2024. He is also a part of the top half of the men's draw, which includes Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.

Medvedev is most likely to face Sebastian Korda in the third round, who has defeated him in their last two encounters. If he manages to outsmart the American, another stern challenge awaits him in the fourth round in the form of Grigor Dimitrov. The Bulgarian also outclassed Medvedev in their previous encounter at Rolex Paris Masters 2023.

Having said that, the fourth seed will need to get past the likes of Rafael Nadal, Taylor Fritz or Holger Rune in the quarterfinals and then see off a challenge from Novak Djokovic in the last four. While Medvedev surely has the pedigree to go the distance, the tricky draw handed to him could present significant roadblocks along the way.