BNP Paribas Open awards 2026 main draw and qualifying wild cards
INDIAN WELLS, Calif. (KESQ) – 2019 BNP Paribas Open and US Open Champion Bianca Andreescu, 2017 US Open Champion Sloane Stephens, and former World No. 6 Gael Monfils lead the list of players awarded main draw wild cards into the 2026 BNP Paribas Open.
The tournament starts this weekend at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
Canada’s Andreescu is set to make her fourth BNP Paribas Open main draw appearance, returning to the tournament where she broke out for her first WTA title in 2019, becoming the first wild card champion in tournament history.
Stephens will make her 14th tournament appearance, returning to Tennis Paradise after missing the event in 2025 due to injury.
2024 Olympic Silver Medalist Donna Vekic also received a main draw wild card, along with 2021 Australian Open runner-up Jennifer Brady, 2025 Roland Garros Junior Champion Lilli Tagger, and Americans Alycia Parks and Katie Volynets.
Former World No. 1 and seven-time Grand Slam singles champion Venus Williams also previously received a wild card.
French legend Gael Monfils headlines the list of ATP wild cards in what will be his 17th and final appearance at Indian Wells. Monfils, who announced that 2026 will be his final year on the ATP Tour, is a 13-time ATP title winner who made his Indian Wells debut in 2005 and has reached the quarterfinals twice in his career.
ATP main draw wild cards were also awarded to two-time NCAA singles National Champion Michael Zheng, 2024 US Open Juniors Champion Rafael Jodar, and Americans Martin Damm Jr., and Zachary Svajda, who is a Southern California native.
Wild cards for the men’s qualifying draw were awarded to 2025 FILA International Junior Singles and Doubles Champion Jagger Leach, USTA National Boys 18s Champion Darwin Blanch, Trevor Svajda, Andrew Johnson, and Izyan Zizou Ahmad. 2025 FILA International Junior Champion Julieta Pareja received a women’s qualifying draw wild card, along with Emerson Jones, Mary Stoiana, Elvina Kalieva, Elizabeth Mandlik, and Akasha Urhobo.
The 2026 BNP Paribas Open begins on Sunday, March 1 with women’s qualifying and runs through March 15 with the conclusion of the men’s and women’s singles final.
Stay with News Channel 3 for complete coverage of the BNP Paribas Open.
