Indian Wells draw as defending champion Fritz faces a likeable run-in

Taylor Fritz will begin his title defence this week against either American Ben Shelton or Italian Fabio Fognini.

Fritz, who last year clinched his first title with an ephatic hard-fought win over Rafael Nadal to end the Spaniard’s 20-game winning streak, will be looking to repeat that feat after the draw was announced on Monday.

With an event set to be missed by many big names, theoretically Fritz biggest challange may come in the quarter final with a possible match against Holger Rune. Rune, who currently sits at No.7, also claimed his maiden Masters trophy last year in Paris after overcoming a tough challange from the 22-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic in the final.

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In-form Daniil Medvedev, who was victorious for third straight title in Dubai earlier this month, is set to meet world No.3 Casper Ruud in the last eight. Spain’s highest-rated player Carlos Alcaras will potentially meet Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime in the quarters.

World No.1 Djokovic withdrew from the tournamen on Sunday, with Nadal also not participating, with the Spaniard still unable to recover from a hip injury he picked up in his 2nd round loss at the Australian open.