Ben Shelton vs. Learner Tien, Coco Gauff vs. Alexandra Eala: Who will win at Indian Wells?

Before every day’s play at the BNP Paribas Open, we’ll preview three must-stream matches.

Ben Shelton vs. Learner Tien

⏰ Estimated begin time: 4:00 pm ET

👉 Stream dwell on the Tennis Channel app

This match feels extremely related to the state of US males’s tennis at the second.

Shelton has been closing in on the No. 1 males’s rating among the many American males for what he looks like a 12 months now. He’s a pair hundred factors behind Taylor Fritz, at No. 8 on the earth. But Shelton’s latest successes—Masters 1000 title in Toronto, Wimbledon and Australian Open quarterfinals, win over Fritz within the Dallas ultimate—have made it appear to be he is the man with the most important upside, the longer term Slam winner, the star within the making.

During the identical time interval, Tien has made a equally spectacular rise, from No. 122 at the beginning of 2025 to No. 27 right this moment. In most methods, he has been a form of second-tier Shelton. He can be a lefty, however he is three years youthful, 5 inches shorter, hits his serve 20 MPH slower, would not have the identical form of explosive athleticism, and is ranked 20 spots decrease.

Yet of their solely assembly, final summer season on grass in Mallorca, it was Tien who was the superior participant and ball-striker. He was the one belting winners into the corners, closing factors at web, and getting back from a break down in every set to win in straights.