Indian Wells has been the venue of some of most of the surprising defeats of Novak Djokovic’s career.
Novak Djokovic heads to California as the joint record title holder but Indian Wells has not always been a happy hunting ground for the Serbian.
The five-time champion is looking to break a barren run of seven years when he returns to Indian Wells in March but the Tennis Garden has played host to a number of shock defeats for Djokovic over the years.
2018: Taro Daniel def. Novak Djokovic 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-1 – Second Round
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2018 in California was the scene of not just one of Djokovic’s’ most surprising defeats at Indian Wells but one of the most shocking losses of his entire career.
A five-time champion, Djokovic was looking to reclaim his crown in 2018 but did so off the back of joint surgery, limiting him to just a week of practice before the tournament began.
Any pre-tournament fears that Djokovic was not fully fit looked like they put to rest when he raced to a 5-3 lead in the first set against No 109 ranked Taro Daniel.
But the Japanese player hit back, winning the first set via tie break and proving Djokovic’s path to the third round would not be so easy.
The Serbian made his mark in the second set, taking it 6-4, but his body seemed to give out on him in the third and Daniel wrapped the game up with a 6-1 victory.
2010: Ivan Ljubicic def. Novak Djokovic 7-5, 6-3 – Round of 16
Having gone out on round one in his debut in the tournament, Djokovic followed it up with a final appearance in 2007 then by a win in 2008 and another quarter-final match in 2009.
This meant that come 2010, the No 2 seed was the overwhelming favourite when he was drawn against Ivan Ljubicic, a man 18 ranked places lower than Djokovic.
But sport is not played on paper and the veteran, who played in his first Grand Slam when Djokovic was 10, took the first set to a tie-break, winning it 7-5 and gaining an unlikely lead.
However, the Croatian and future Roger Federer coach stepped up a gear in the second set to win 6-3 and take the match after 1:45 hours of play.
The match was Ljubicic’s biggest scalp in a remarkable run that saw him defeat Rafa Nadal in the semis and then Andy Roddick in the final, securing the first Masters title of his career.
2017: Nick Kyrgios def. Novak Djokovic 6-4, 7-6(3) – Round of 16
One of the few players to have a winning record against Djokovic, Nick Kyrgios proved too good in 2017 to knock the Serbian out in the Round of 16.
Djokovic served first but Kyrgios broke him immediately to set the tone of the match going forward.
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But it was the Australian’s own service game that was decisive with 14 aces to Djokovic’s four and 72% service points won to Djokovic’s 65%.
It was the second time the divisive Kyrgios beat Djokovic in as many meetings but the Australian lost in the next round to Roger Federer.
2019: Philipp Kohlschreiber def. Novak Djokovic 6-4, 6-4 – Third Round
In a year that saw him win a seventh Australian Open, Djokovic’s 2019 came across a speed bump in the form of No 20 seed Philipp Kohlschreiber.
Before the match, the German had beaten Djokovic just once in their past nine meetings and given the Serbian’s status as the No 1 seed, it looked like that poor record was only going one way.
However, Kohlschreiber ended Djokovic’s 2019 Indian Wells campaign in a remarkable straight sets victory, ensuring Djokovic would be eliminated in the fourth round or earlier in the previous three tournaments.
The defeat marked the start of a long absence of Djokovic at the tournament, missing out in ‘21, ‘22 and ‘23 before finally returning in 2024.
As for Kohlschreiber, he won just two games in a crushing defeat by Gael Monfils in the Round of 16.
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2024: Luca Nardi def. Novak Djokovic 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 – Third Round
Djokovic returned to the tournament in 2024 after missing the previous three editions but he was unable to reclaim his crown with a surprise defeat to Italian Luca Nardi.
The lucky loser, who replaced 30th seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry, came up against the No 1 seed in the third round and won the first and third sets to pull off the remarkable victory at the age of just 20.
It remains the biggest scalp of Nardi’s young career and the only time a lucky loser has inflicted defeat on Djokovic at an ATP Masters 1000 event. He is also the lowest-ranked player to ever beat Djokovic at a Masters or a Grand Slam.
However, Nardi’s own tournament came to an end in the next round, losing in straight sets to American Tommy Paul.