Jack Draper begins Indian Wells title defence with three-set victory over Roberto Bautista Agut
Jack Draper lost the first set but came back strongly to beat Roberto Bautista Agut 3-6 6-3 6-2; Draper won Indian Wells in 2025 and is back playing on ATP Tour after an arm injury; watch BNP Paribas Open live on Sky Sports until March 15
Sunday 8 March 2026 10:44, UK
Jack Draper began the defence of his Indian Wells title with a three-set win over Roberto Bautista Agut to move into the third round.
The British No 1 lost the first set 6-3 but came back strongly to win the final two sets 6-3 6-2.
He started his first game at this tournament brightly, getting three break points but Bautista Agut did well to repel him and hold serve.
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Bautista Agut attacked in the sixth game of the first set to secure the break and move 4-2 up. He then consolidated that break, holding serve in the next game to take the set.
But Draper stormed back. He bulleted a back hand winner down the line to break Bautista Agut early in the second set. And then held to love to take a commanding 3-0 lead and win the set from there.
He was decisive in the third set, getting to three break points in the third game and claiming the first of them.
Bautista Agut threatened to break back in the sixth game but Draper marshalled him to continue his progress.
The Briton grabbed a break to serve for the match. Bautista Agut attempted to fight back but from 0-40 down but Draper wouldn't let up and went on to take the match.
En route to claiming his Indian Wells title last year, Draper defeated world No 1 Carlos Alcaraz before beating Denmark's Holger Rune in the final.
He will find it a tall order to repeat those heroics this year having only recently returned from a long injury lay-off.
"It felt amazing," Draper told Sky Sports Tennis. "It's nice to be back somewhere where I've had great memories. But also I'm a little bit under-prepared because of the amount of tennis I've missed.
"The injury I had it wasn't like a couple of weeks. It was eight months. I missed so much competitive tennis and I do feel that. I feel a little bit off. In practice my level's good but when it comes to the match court I'm definitely a bit in and out with my consistency. But I think that's going to come.
"I was coming out today against a really formidable opponent," Draper continued. "He played really good in the first set. It's not easy out here in these conditions. I know from last year these conditions reward someone who looks to the forehand and who's aggressive, especially with the way the ball reacts off the surface. I felt like from the second set I really did that.
"These wins are massive for me, especially on my return to the tour.
"Hopefully I can keep on progressing from here with how I want to play."
Elsewhere at Indian Wells
There was further success for British tennis when Sonay Kartal upset the USA's Emma Navarro.
Their match went to a third set tiebreaker, with Kartal prevailing 6-1 3-6 7-6 (7-2).
Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina came through in three sets to beat Hailey Baptiste 7-6 (5) 2-6 6-2.
Jannik Sinner was also in action, overwhelming Dalibor Svrcina 6-1 6-1, while Iga Swiatek beat Kayla Day 6-0 7-6 (7-2).
Playing in his first match since his impressive run at the Australian Open that included a thrilling five-set semi-final win over Sinner, Novak Djokovic needed some time to shake the rust off but ultimately prevailed 4-6 6-1 6-2 over Majchrzak.
Cameron Norrie, who is seeded 27th, cruised past American qualifier Mackenzie McDonald in straight sets 6-2 6-3.
World number one Carlos Alcaraz also made quick work of Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov, securing a dominant 6-2 6-3 win.
However, British number three Jacob Fearnley went down down 3-6 7-6 (8) 6-1 against seventh seed Taylor Fritz to end his Indian Wells journey.
Watch the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells live on Sky Sports until March 15. Stream tennis with NOW, contract-free.
