Pros quickly learn Indian Wells can bite back with weather shifts
INDIAN WELLS — Tennis Paradise might be a misnomer.
The swirling winds, seesawing temperatures and generally capricious conditions of the BNP Paribas Open often belie one of the tour’s most beloved stops on the tennis calendar, the one nicknamed “tennis heaven.”
The tournament even presents itself with this slogan, including an imposing sign in the center of the venue’s field.
But as the first days of the joint men’s and women’s event demonstrated once again, there is sometimes a little hell in the garden of Eden of tennis.
Naomi Osaka returns a shot to Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva during the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden on Friday.
(Matthieu Stockman/Getty Images)
“I think today is not the kind of day you want to evaluate,” Venus Williams said after a first-round loss to Frenchwoman Diane Parry on Thursday. “The conditions are impossible.”
The BNP Paribas Open takes place in a landscape that looks less like a controlled tennis environment and more like a changing desert weather system.
Indian Wells is in the Coachella Valley, about 120 miles east of downtown Los Angeles, sandwiched between the San Jacinto and San Bernardino Mountains. This geography transforms the valley into a natural wind tunnel. As hot air rises from the desert floor, cooler air descends from above and funnels between mountain ranges, sending unpredictable gusts sweeping through the tennis complex.
These winds add to the dramatic temperature changes typical of the desert.
The daytime sun can bake the courts, sending balls flying faster through the thin, dry air, while nighttime sessions can seem almost chilly in comparison, as temperatures drop sharply after sunset. Even rain, rare in a region where there are on average fewer than 20 days a year, has a habit of arriving in early March, sometimes bringing cold drizzle and delays.
Appearances can also be deceiving to those not in the field.
“You can’t really see it on TV, I think, when there’s a crazy wind or if there’s a sandstorm, it’s still beautiful,” sixth-ranked American Amanda Anisimova said after coming back to defeat Anna Blinkova 5-7, 6-1, 6-0 in the second round Friday night.
One of the most infamous results took place in 2005.
That year, Maria Sharapova, 17 years old and fresh from upsetting Serena Williams to win Wimbledon a few months earlier, lost 6-0, 6-0 in the semifinals to American Lindsay Davenport. It was the only double bagel of the Russian’s Hall of Fame career.
After the match, a shell-shocked Sharapova explained that the tricky winds made her unsure whether her balls would land, undermining her laser-like groundstrokes and her confidence.
“I have never faced such a powerful player in these kinds of conditions,” the five-time Grand Slam winner said that day. “I guess even when you have a little opportunity, you hesitate a little bit because you know the conditions aren’t right.”
Two decades later, this fickle line continues.
Grigor Dimitrov returns a shot to Terence Atmane during the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden on Thursday in Indian Wells.
(Matthieu Stockman/Getty Images)
Several players, from 19-year-old Indian Wells debutant Victoria Mboko of Canada to 45-year-old Williams, who first competed here 30 years ago in 1996, have already had a taste during the tournament’s opening days.
Sometimes windy weather can disrupt play, as a bag of takeout food was blown onto the stadium’s main court during Grigor Dimitrov’s first-round victory over Terence Atmane on Thursday.
“The playing conditions here are terrible,” the Bulgarian said in his post-match comments on the pitch after securing a victory.
The result is a tournament defined by contradictions.
Circumstances can change not just from day to night, but from hour to hour: hot afternoons with lively balls, cooler evenings when the pace slows, and swirling winds that can cause a serve to deflect to the side or a groundstroke to wobble.
For players, Indian Wells may feel less like one event and more like several rolled into one. It reminds us that even in a place billed as a “tennis paradise,” it is the desert that ultimately determines the conditions.
Jannik Sinner prepares to leave the players’ tunnel before a match against Dalibor Svrcina at the BNP Paribas Open on Friday in Indian Wells.
(Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
Not everyone likes variability.
American Tommy Paul played his opening match Friday on the stadium’s largest show court, Stadium 1. With its larger layout, open entrances and large concourses, it can pose particular problems in forcing players to adapt on the fly.
“I really like the conditions, especially on this court too,” Paul, seeded No. 23, said after beating Belgian Zizou Bergs 6-1, 6-2.
Of course, part of traveling the world as a professional player involves navigating different surfaces, balls, winds, temperatures, time zones and local environments. It’s a reality of life on tour.
Most take it in stride or view the Indian Wells location as a fair tradeoff for the otherwise stunning backdrop of mountains, picturesque sunsets, and lavish amenities.
“I mean, at the end of the day, you can’t control the weather, and I think it’s kind of fun because it brings a challenge to all the players,” said Anisimova, a Wimbledon and US Open finalist last year. “It’s still paradise because of the landscape and the beauty of this place,” she adds.
Anisimova is not one to complain, although she has yet to get used to the unpredictability of the tournament. In her last two appearances here, she lost her opening match.
She admits: “I don’t think it’s fun for everyone. »
