Rafael Nadal is drawn in the same quarterfinal as Roger Federer at Indian Wells. The two have played 28 times throughout their careers, with Nadal owning an 18-10 edge, but they have never played in a quarterfinal. They have faced off only twice prior to the semifinals, once in their first contest against each other in the round of 32 at the 2004 Miami Masters (a win by Nadal) and in the round-robin portion of the 2011 ATP World Tour Finals (a win by Federer).

After taking seven months off to nurse a knee injury, Nadal retuned to play a month ago in Vina Del Mar, Chile. The now-world No. 5 has a bye could face Ryan Harrison in the second round, 30th-seed Mikhail Youzhny in the third round, and No. 9 Janko Tipsarevic or No. 20 Andreas Seppi in the fourth round, before a potential match with Federer.

Federer could face Julien Benneteau, who knocked him out of Rotterdam last month, in the third round. His seeded fourth-round foes could be No. 15 John Isner or No. 18 Stan Wawrinka.