In the IW draw, Djokovic faces the defending champion, Zheng Qinwen encounters tough opponents including Vondrousova, and Memphis returns to the WTA.

Three minutes a day, stay updated on global tennis. Hello tennis fans, today is Tuesday, March 3, 2026, the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Wishing all tennis friends a happy Lantern Festival, filled with family reunion and happiness! Welcome to the midday news report provided by "Tennis Home".

This morning Beijing time, the main draw singles entry lists for the 2026 ATP/WTA1000 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, USA, were officially announced. On the men's side: The world's top ten are all participating. The projected quarterfinal matchups for the top eight seeds are as follows: In the top half, Alcaraz vs. de Minaur, Djokovic vs. Fritz; in the bottom half, Musetti vs. Zverev, Shelton vs. Sinner. No Chinese players are in the main draw, but two players will compete in the qualifying rounds: Hong Kong player Coleman Wong and Taiwanese player Tseng Chun-hsin.

After the draw was released, some fans noticed that in Novak Djokovic's section, his projected seeded opponent is the defending champion and British No. 1, Jack Draper. If both win three matches, they will meet in the quarterfinals.

Russian stars Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev, who have not yet left Dubai, are still listed in the draw. Foreign media reports indicate that the two Russian players have chosen a land route to depart Dubai, planning to go to Oman first, then take a private flight via Turkey to Indian Wells. We hope they escape safely and that other players stranded in Dubai can also evacuate safely.

On the women's side: The projected quarterfinal matchups for the top eight seeds are: In the top half, Sabalenka vs. Anisimova, Gauff vs. Paolini; in the bottom half, Pegula vs. Rybakina, Mirra Andreeva vs. Swiatek. Chinese No. 1 Zheng Qinwen is seeded 24th, has a first-round bye, and will await the winner between the returning American Jennifer Brady and Croatian Petra Martić in the second round. If she advances, she could face Czech star Karolína Muchová in the third round, with a likely fourth-round encounter against No. 2 seed and world No. 2 Iga Świątek—a tough draw indeed.

Chinese No. 2 Wang Xinyu also has a first-round bye. Her second-round opponent will be determined between Australian Ajla Tomljanović and Romanian Sorana Cîrstea. If she advances, she might face the Italian powerhouse Jasmine Paolini. Chinese veteran Zhang Shuai will face Ukrainian Dayana Yastremska in the first round. A win would set up a second-round match against Philippine No. 1 Alexandra Eala. Best of luck to the Chinese players!

In other news, in the first round of the WTA1000 Indian Wells qualifying, Chinese player Yuan Yue lost 2-6, 4-6 to Hungarian Dalma Gálfi, suffering revenge and failing to advance.

Let's turn to other news. This morning Beijing time, the WTA announced that after more than 14 years, the Memphis Open in the USA will return to the WTA Tour this year. Reports state this year's Memphis event is a WTA 250 tournament, scheduled for July 27 at the Leftwich Tennis Center, replacing the originally scheduled late-August Cleveland event. It will be an outdoor hard-court tournament.

Finally, time for a guessing game. The image below shows a player during training. Without any hints, can you recognize who she is?

In the previous guessing game, fans provided the correct answer. Yes, the person in the picture is American player Taylor Townsend.

(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Independent Spirit)