Nardi, 20, stuns Djokovic in Indian Wells

Peter Staples/ATP Tour

Italian Luca Nardi entered the BNP Paribas Open main draw as a lucky loser — and the 20-year-old couldn't believe his luck in drawing his idol Novak Djokovic in the third round.

On Monday night, Nardi notched the biggest win of his career by beating the World No. 1, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. As the No. 123 in the PIF ATP Rankings, he is the lowest-ranked player to defeat Djokovic at the ATP Masters 1000 or Grand Slam level. He is also the fourth lowest-ranked player to beat a reigning World No. 1 at a Masters 1000.

"I think that before this night no one knew me," Nardi said after recording just his fifth tour-level match win. "I hope that the crowd enjoyed the game. I'm super happy with this one."

The Italian, who earned his first Top 50 win by beating Zhang Zhizhen in the second round, brought his very best tennis in the first and third sets to cut short Djokovic's stay in his first Indian Wells appearance since 2019. He hit through the Serbian's defenses with an ultra-aggressive game plan and complemented his baseline bashing with timely displays of touch from the frontcourt.

Djokovic, after an off-colour start, asserted himself in a dominant second set. For the first extended period in the match, both players found their best tennis at the same time early in the third.

As the fearless Nardi continued to connect with big swings, Djokovic needed every bit of his arsenal to fight off three break points for 1-1. But he could not escape 0/40 at 2-3, before Nardi wriggled out of 0/30 on his own serve to consolidate what proved to be the decisive break.

"I don't know [how I held my nerve]," he said of the tense finish. "I think it is a miracle, because I am a 20-year-old guy, 100 in the world, and beating Novak. It's crazy."

The Italian sealed the career-defining victory with his sixth ace of the match, stopping the five-time champion in his chase for a record sixth Indian Wells title. He hit 16 winners to Djokovic's two in the final set, pulling away in supreme style down the stretch.

Nardi, who competed at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF last November, will continue his dream run against American Tommy Paul on Wednesday.

What dreams are made of 🤩

Lucky loser @Luca___Nardi knocks out World No.1 Novak Djokovic 6-4 3-6 6-3, to reach the Indian Wells round of 16.
@BNPPARIBASOPEN | #TennisParadise pic.twitter.com/WRdbC3KCvn

— ATP Tour (@atptour) March 12, 2024

Djokovic saw his 11-match winning streak at ATP Masters 1000s snapped following his title runs in Cincinnati and Paris. He also suffered his first loss to a player outside the Top 50 of the PIF ATP Rankings since a defeat to No. 109 Taro Daniel in 2018, also in Indian Wells.

Each of Djokovic's past two defeats have come against young Italians, with Nardi following 22-year-old Jannik Sinner's victory against the Serbian in the Australian Open semi-finals.

"For sure I'm watching Jannik winning all the matches," Nardi said when asked if he draws inspiration from his countryman. "For sure it's something that pushed me to be better. I didn't expect to win today, but I always try to do my best in practice, and this happened and I'm really happy."

Nardi has soared 27 places this week to No. 96 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, setting himself up for his Top 100 debut.

Players Outside Top 100 To Beat Top 2 Opponents (Since 2015)