It's going to be an action-packed day of tennis today in the desert, where Mubadala Citi DC Open's top stars and champions are set to headline a string of blockbuster matches at the BNP Paribas Open.
Defending men's singles champion and top American Taylor Fritz will continue his bid for a second ATP Masters 1000 crown at his hometown tournament in Indian Wells, California. The current World No. 5, who dropped just three games against his third-round opponent Sebastian Baez, takes on World No. 84 Marton Fucsovics for a spot in the quarterfinals around 6 p.m. ET.
Should Fritz prevail, he'll face the winner of an unexpected fourth-round showdown between 2021 Mubadala Citi DC Open champion Jannik Sinner and 37-year-old tour veteran and three-time Grand Slam championStan Wawrinka, who upset Citi Open Next-Gen star and current World No. 8 Holger Rune in a tense three-setter yesterday. The pair are scheduled to play around 9:30 p.m.
Positioned in the same section of the draw, Citi Open fan favorites Felix Auger Aliassime and Tommy Paul will meet for the first time in tonight's men's nitecap around 10:30 p.m. The victor could face top seed Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals next. The current World No. 2 takes on rising British Next-Gen ATP star Jack Draper around 9 p.m.
In the opposite section, DC's own Frances Tiafoe will look to make the most of a giant opportunity in the bottom quarter of the draw in the wake of World No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas's stunning second-round loss to Aussie Jordan Thompson. The College Park native and No. 14 seed plays Chilean qualifier Alejandro Tabilo for a spot in the quarterfinals around 7 p.m. The winner will face either 2022 Citi Open semifinalist Andrey Rublev or Cam Norrie next.
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On the women's side, Citi Open headliner and 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu will take on World No. 1 and defending champion Iga Swiatek in the featured match of the evening around 11 p.m. ET. Swiatek won their only previous encounter in straight sets in Stuttgart last year and is currently riding a 14-3 winning record, as she seeks to win her 13th WTA title in Indian Wells.
Raducanu's run this week, meanwhile, marks the fourth time in her career she has won three consecutive main-draw matches, following Wimbledon 2021 (fourth round), US Open 2021 (champion) and Seoul 2022 (semifinals).
Top American and two-time Mubadala Citi DC Open champ Jessica Pegula will also be in action today. The Buffalo native and current World No. 3 faces two-time Wimbledon champ and No. 15 seed Petra Kvitova, around 7 p.m., in a bid to reach a seventh consecutive quarterfinal at the WTA 1000 level or above. She's finished within the final-8, at least, in the last 10 tournaments she's played, dating back to the 2022 Miami Open.
DC's own Andrew Fenty wins prestigious Universal Tennis Foundation Hurd award!
Elsewhere, 2019 Citi Open doubles champion Coco Gauff defeatad qualifier Rebecca Peterson, 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, to advance to her fourth quarterfinal this year in the first match of the day. Peterson won their sole prior meeting in the second round of the 2019 Midland ITF Dow Tennis Classic. Gauff was 14 years old and ranked No. 684. It was also the fifth professional tournament of her career.
In today's men's opener, 2019 Mubadala Citi DC Open finalist and No. 5 seed Daniil Medvedev dug deep to beat two-time Citi Open champion Alexander Zverev, 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 7-5, to reach the quarterfinals and extend his 17-match winning streak. Medvedev now holds a narrow, 7-6 lead in the pair's ATP Head2Head series, which includes a memorable quarterfinal match in Rock Creek Park, in 2017, which Zverev won en route to capturing his maiden DC title.
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