Google News
Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka and former world No. 3 Milos Raonic have both withdrawn from the Indian Wells Masters. Wawrinka, a former world No. 3, won't be making his 12th appearance at the Indian Wells Masters this year.
Wawrinka's best result at the Indian Wells Masters came in 2017, when he made the final before losing to fellow compatriot Roger Federer. On the other side, Raonic won't be making his ninth appearance on the hard courts of Indian Wells.
In each of his last four Indian Wells appearances, Raonic enjoyed a deep run. Raonic ended runner-up to Novak Djokovic in the 2016 Indian Wells final, while he made the semifinal at the tournament in 2015, 2018 and 2019.
It has been a rough year for Wawrinka
Wawrinka's last appearance came in March, when he lost in the Dubai first round. In June, Wawrinka underwent another foot surgery. Recently, Wawrinka acknowledged the greatness of the Big 3.
“Well, you never expect a player to be ready to win four Grand Slams, but I think what they show us since 15 years, even more between Roger, Rafa, and Novak, it’s, they are just pushing and pushing and pushing the extreme limit of how well you can play in tennis.
Novak a bit more the last few years. His level is for sure something special,” said Wawrinka. Menwhile, Raonic reflected on Leylah Fernandez's runner-up finish at the US Open. "It’s been incredible. It’s not just a magical run to play her first semifinal, it’s also the quality of player she’s been beating, the way she’s been beating them.
There’s a lot of grit behind it," Raonic said of Fernandez's run, per Mark Masters. "It feels like a lot of the girls she’s played against are almost shell-shocked by it," Raonic noted. Following the withdrawals of Wawrinka and Raonic, a place in the Indian Wells main draw opened for Tennys Sandgren and Denis Kudla.