Novak Djokovic confirms participation in Indian Wells Masters: Details here
What's the story
Novak Djokovic, the Serbian tennis ace, has confirmed his participation in the upcoming Indian Wells Masters. The tournament will kick off this week. Djokovic, the 24-time Grand Slam champion, has played only one tournament in the season so far, reaching the Australian Open final. He beat Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals but lost to Carlos Alcaraz, who won in four sets.
Tournament absences
Djokovic's absence from recent tournaments
After his Australian Open campaign, Djokovic opted out of the Qatar Open and Dubai Tennis Championships. He took this decision to recuperate from the grueling tournament in Melbourne. In recent years, he has been skipping non-Grand Slam events to save his energy for major tournaments. Despite these absences, Djokovic has confirmed his return to competitive tennis at the Indian Wells Masters.
Tournament history
Djokovic's history at Indian Wells
Djokovic has an outstanding track record at Indian Wells, having won five titles, the joint-most with Roger Federer. He was knocked out in the second and third rounds in his last two visits to this tournament and hasn't won it since 2016. Overall, the Serb has a 51-11 win-loss record at Indian Wells.
Preparation
Djokovic trains at UCLA ahead of Indian Wells Masters
In preparation for the tournament, Djokovic has been training at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) over the last few days. He also interacted with the university's American football team during their practice sessions. "As an individual athlete, one of the things I really miss is the team spirit that you build and maintain here every day," he said after his time with them.