Jannik Sinner arrived in Indian Wells a week ahead of the draw, and the early preparation paid off when he defeated Daniil Medvedev 7-6(6), 7-6(4) to win the BNP Paribas Open. After the final he joined Episode 11 of The Big T podcast live to unpack the title run and the history he made.

Sinner’s victory made him the youngest man in the Open Era to win all six hard-court ATP Masters 1000 events. He also did not drop a set across six matches en route to the trophy, a streak he credited in part to a shift in approach.

On his surface preference and preparation, Sinner said, “I love to play tennis in general,” as Mark Petchey teased him about his penchant for clay courts. He explained the decision to remain on site after a less convincing week in Doha: “I felt like in Doha [where he lost to Jakub Mensik] I wasn’t playing my best tennis, but this can happen,” he said. “It’s normal to not always play at your top. I wanted to go back to Monaco, but the weather was very bad, so I said, ‘You know what? Let’s come here very early to prepare for this tournament.’

“It was one of the tournaments I never won, so I wanted to come here very early, trying to be focused on the process.”

Sinner described how a mental reset has helped him remain calm in key moments. “A couple of years ago … coming here, I was like, ‘I don’t feel well,’ but now, the mindset is different,” he said. “I try to move my game around however I feel and making less problems. Being more relaxed. At the end of this day, this is a mental sport, and I try to stay very calm. Also today, in the important moments. This helps me.

“Now, whatever comes, it’s only a positive. I’m extremely happy with how we are working, and I do believe that if we keep working hard and we keep pushing, the results will come eventually, and if not, we tried our best.”

Asked about tactics in the final, Sinner noted the aggressive plan against Medvedev and the pressure of the occasion: “I tried to go for shots even though in the beginning I was missing a little bit,” Sinner, who was 4-0 down in the second-set tiebreaker, said. “He was playing more aggressive than I was, so I tried to move him around a little bit on the forehand. … If you give him space, he’s very good with opening the court, so I tried to play tactically in the right way.

“At times, I managed to do well. At times, I could’ve gone for a little bit more towards the net, but there was also a little bit of tension. I knew what I was playing for today. It’s a huge achievement for me and from my side, and I’m very happy.”

He also described how off-court distractions helped him decompress before the event and joked about golf: “We don’t talk about handicap,” he joked. “I like to go around with a little bit of music … I don’t care about how I play, in golf at least!”

Indian Wells is behind us, but tennis stops for no one. Not even BNP Paribas Open champions Aryna Sabalenka and Jannik Sinner, who are aiming for the elusive Sunshine Double in Miami. No WTA player has won both hard-court tournaments in the same season since 2022 (Iga Swiatek), and no ATP player has won it since 2017 (Roger Federer).

Both contenders arrive with strong cases. Sabalenka is the defending champion and carries 1000 ranking points on the line. Sinner is returning to Hard Rock Stadium after missing the event in 2025; in 2024, he won it all.

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Most players who competed in Indian Wells are heading to Miami for another shot at a 1000-level title. There are some exceptions, most notably Novak Djokovic, who has withdrawn with a right shoulder injury.

Alexandra Eala continued a steady climb up the WTA rankings this week, moving from No. 32 to a career-high No. 29 after advancing to the fourth round at Indian Wells.

The 20-year-old cemented more history for Philippine tennis. Almost a year ago she became the first player from the Philippines to reach the WTA Top 100 following her breakthrough run to the semifinals in Miami. Since then she has advanced into the Top 50 late last year, entered the Top 40 earlier this season and reached No. 31 a few weeks ago.

Eala’s results over the past year show growing consistency at WTA level. This stretch includes six appearances at WTA events that ended in a quarterfinal or better: one final (Eastbourne last year), two semifinals (Miami last year and Auckland this year) and three quarterfinals (Sao Paulo last year and Abu Dhabi and Dubai this year). She has also collected her first seven wins over Top 30 players in the last year, including her first four Top 10 victories. A year ago on this day she was ranked No. 140.

Other movement on the WTA list came after Indian Wells. Elena Rybakina rose from No. 3 to a new career-high of No. 2 following her run to the final; she had already clinched that rise by reaching the semifinals. Victoria Mboko moved from No. 10 to a new high of No. 9 after reaching the quarterfinals in her tournament debut. Cristina Bucsa climbed one spot to No. 30 for her Top 30 debut after having soared to No. 31 two weeks earlier following a WTA 500 title in Merida, Mexico.

The tournament produced another breakthrough in Talia Gibson, who made her Top 100 debut, jumping from No. 112 to No. 68 after reaching her first WTA 1000 quarterfinal and her first WTA quarterfinal overall. Gibson had never beaten a Top 50 player before the event but defeated four en route to the final eight, including her first Top 10 win against Jasmine Paolini.

On the ATP side, Daniil Medvedev returned to the Top 10, moving from No. 11 to No. 10 after reaching the Indian Wells final. Luciano Darderi rose from No. 21 to No. 18 for his Top 20 debut, creating four Italians inside the ATP Top 20 alongside No. 2 Jannik Sinner, No. 5 Lorenzo Musetti and No. 14 Flavio Cobolli.