Jannik Sinner cruises to fourth round at Indian Wells

World No. 2 Sinner dominates Denis Shapovalov in straight sets to advance at BNP Paribas Open

Published on Mar. 9, 2026

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World No. 2 Jannik Sinner continued his strong run at the BNP Paribas Open, defeating Canada's Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-2 in 73 minutes to reach the fourth round at Indian Wells. The Italian is now 2-1 head-to-head against the 39th-ranked Shapovalov and has made the semifinals at this event in 2023 and 2024.

Why it matters

Sinner's victory over Shapovalov keeps him on track for a potential title at Indian Wells, one of the biggest non-Grand Slam events on the ATP Tour. The 21-year-old Italian is seeking his first career title at this prestigious tournament after falling to Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals the past two years.

The details

Sinner converted 4 of 8 break point opportunities and won 85% of his first serve points, compared to Shapovalov's 62%. The Italian also had the edge in aces (6-2) and unforced errors (11-25). Meanwhile, American Ben Shelton was upset by fellow countryman Learner Tien, while other seeded players like Tommy Paul and Jakub Mensik also suffered early exits.

  • Sinner's match against Shapovalov took place on Sunday, March 9, 2026.

The players

Jannik Sinner

The 21-year-old Italian is currently ranked World No. 2 and is seeking his first title at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

Denis Shapovalov

The 39th-ranked Canadian player faced off against Sinner in the third round of the Indian Wells tournament.

Learner Tien

The 20-year-old American, seeded 25th, pulled off an upset over 8th-ranked compatriot Ben Shelton in the Round of 32.

Ben Shelton

The 8th-ranked American was upset by Learner Tien despite battling through an illness during the tournament.

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What they’re saying

“Denis is a high quality-player, as we know. He's an in-form player, so I'm very happy with my performance. I tried to stay solid at the baseline, but also a bit more aggressive in the second set, which helped me. It was a tough start for me, but I'm happy with how I reacted.”

— Jannik Sinner (yardbarker.com)

“I just want to say, Ben came out not feeling 100%. I don't think he's been feeling great all week, but he's an amazing competitor and he came out and gave it his all. So I just want to say, huge props to him.”

— Learner Tien (yardbarker.com)

What’s next

Sinner will face the winner of the match between 18th-seeded Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and unseeded Brazilian Joao Fonseca in the fourth round of the BNP Paribas Open.

The takeaway

Jannik Sinner's dominant performance over Denis Shapovalov keeps the 21-year-old Italian on track for a potential first career title at the prestigious Indian Wells tournament, where he has reached the semifinals the past two years but fallen short against World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz.