Femcompetitor.com, grapplingstars.com, fciwomenswrestling.com, fcielitecompetitor.com, Colin-McPhedran-Sutterstock-photo-Editorial-use
April 9, 2022,
If there were another Grand Slam on the professional tennis circuit, it would be this powerful one.
If you are an emerging tennis fan, you should know more about the large tournaments that are preludes to the Grand Slams.
Often called the fifth Slam of the year, The Indian Wells Masters, also known as the Indian Wells Open and BNP Paribas Open is an annual tennis tournament usually held in early- and mid-March at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, California.
The current owner is Larry Ellison, executive chairman and co-founder of Oracle.
The current tournament director is the former world No. 2 player and one of our favorite stars from back in the day, is Tommy Haas.
We have watched this tournament for years, dating back to the 1990s and it is one our favorites on the hard courts.
The women’s main draw usually starts on Wednesday and the men’s main draw starts on Thursday. Both finals are held on Sunday of the following week. Both singles main draws include 96 players in a 128-player grid, with the 32 seeded players getting a bye (a free pass) to the second round.
Time for some basics.
Indian Wells is a city in Riverside County, California, in the Coachella Valley.
Incorporated in 1967, it lies in between the cities of Palm Desert and La Quinta.
As of the 2010 Census, the city population was 4,958.
To place it in perspective, it is located near world famous upscale city of Palm Springs.
A movie star by herself. She’s appeared in a lot of them.
Much to do about something in Indian Wells.
The informative team at visitgreaterpalmsprings.com educate, “Like any distinctive resort destination, leisure is the main agenda in Indian Wells, and visitors do it well here. There’s nothing like taking the vacation life easy—whether sunbathing at a resort pool, shopping for luxury goods or teeing off with the iconic desert backdrop—in a city that’s just as soulful as it is pretty.
Thanks to Indian Wells Tennis Garden, the second largest tennis stadium in the world, Indian Wells has become the stomping ground for tennis aficionados, world renowned tennis players and their die-hard celebrity fans thanks to the annual BNP Paribas tennis tournament. With world-class facilities and striking, mountain views, the Indian Wells Tennis Garden is also home to the buzzing Indian Wells Art Festival, which features more than 200 artists and their contemporary and fine art work, and several top-billed concerts throughout the year.”
Very impressive.
Wear your shorts, plenty of places to get refreshments, take in a spa, have a splendid dinner and watch some incredible tennis.
This tournament lasts for 2 weeks, so you can pick the order.
The Indian Wells Tennis Garden, contains the second-largest tennis-specific stadium in the world.
The tournament is a Masters 1000 event on the men’s tour and is a WTA 1000 event on the women’s tour.
What does that mean?
The ATP Masters 1000 tournaments, previously known as ATP Masters Series, is an annual series of nine tennis tournaments featuring the top-ranked players on the ATP Tour.
The series’ events have been held in Europe and North America since the debut of ATP Tour in 1990, and also in Asia since 2009.
Though not Grand Slam events, the ATP Masters, along with the ATP Finals, constitute the most coveted trophies in tennis after the four majors, and the tournaments are collectively known as the “Big Titles” (alongside the Olympics).
The series was introduced in 1990 with the inception of the ATP Tour by bringing together the nine most prestigious tournaments of the preceding Grand Prix tennis circuit.
Results in ATP Masters events earn players more ranking points than regular tournaments but less than Grand Slam events or the year-end ATP Finals.
Up until 2007, most Masters Series finals were contested as best-of-five-set matches, but from 2008 all events were decided in best-of-three-set matches.
Focusing on the women’s side, WTA 1000 tournaments is a category of tennis tournaments in the Women’s Tennis Association tour. The old Premier Mandatory and Premier 5 tournaments merged into a single highest tier and it is implemented since the reorganization of the schedule in 2021.
So how are things going thus far in 2022?
One of the big names to fall early was Sofia Kenin.
Who were some of the big names that played in this year’s 2022 tournament?
Naomi Osaka, Coco Gauff, Alison Riske, Iga Swiatek, Shelby Rogers, Simona Halep and the 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu.
Who were we keenly interested in?
Drum roll please.
America’s Amanda Anisimova is following up with some great play after recently having a fantastic 2022 Australian Open.
She continues to surge.
As reported by tennisnow.com, “Amanda Anisimova won the Eisenhower Cup—and pledged to share some of her prize money with Ukrainian relief efforts. Anisimova beat Maria Sakkari 10-7 in the Eisenhower Cup final, a Tie Break Tens exhibition event at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden’s Stadium 2 on Tuesday night.”
The world appreciates that.
The team at bnpparibasopen.com fills out the larger picture by sharing, “Eight elite WTA stars, several hot mics, a few stationary bikes and tons of good vibes. International Women’s Day was celebrated in style on Tuesday night at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden as a formidable octet gathered to battle for the Eisenhower Cup on Stadium 2.
And it was Amanda Anisimova, the lowest-ranked of the eight, who emerged as the champion in the Tiebreak Tens event, defeating Maria Sakkari 10-7 in the final.”
So there you have it.
If you were not familiar with the Masters Series or Indian Wells, hopefully this presents you with a good foundation.
We’re excited that this is an important event for the female tennis players to participate in with the increased points and prize money that goes with it. Research indicates the champion will receive $1,209,730.
Afterwards they can go shopping in Indian Wells.
Shorts and a cool hot tan are optional.
We’re were extremely happy to see Coco Gauff win a tough fight in the second set against Claire Lui and Naomi Osaka make a powerful comeback after losing the first set to the 2017 US Open champion, Sloane Stephens.
This year’s eventually winner was Iga Swiatek (See opening photo above), currently ranked at number one. In terms of play, like the Southern California sun, Poland’s super star is sizzling hot.
For up close action, you should subscribe to the Tennis Channel. We do.
If not, no worries, we will watch the tournament for you and report back to you what has been happening.
Year after year, the 2022 Indians Wells Masters Tournament promises to be sunny and solar powered.
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OPENING PHOTO Femcompetitor.com, grapplingstars.com, fciwomenswrestling.com, fcielitecompetitor.com, Colin-McPhedran-Sutterstock-photo-Editorial-use
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Wells,_California
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/getting-around-palm-springs
https://www.visitgreaterpalmsprings.com/blog/post/must-attractions-in-indian-wells/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATP_Tour_Masters_1000
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WTA_1000_tournaments
https://bnpparibasopen.com/news/amanda-anisimova-takes-home-2022-eisenhower-cup-title/
https://www.fcielitecompetitor.com/
https://fciwomenswrestling.com/
