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

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

Ben Shelton vs. Learner Tien

⏰ Estimated start time: 4:00 p.m. ET

👉 Stream live on the Tennis Channel app

This match feels highly relevant to the state of U.S. men’s tennis at the moment.

Shelton has been closing in on the No. 1 men’s ranking among the American men for what feels like a year now. He’s a couple hundred points behind Taylor Fritz, at No. 8 in the world. But Shelton's recent successes—Masters 1000 title in Toronto, Wimbledon and Australian Open quarterfinals, win over Fritz in the Dallas final—have made it seem like he’s the guy with the biggest upside, the future Slam winner, the star in the making.

During the same time period, Tien has made a similarly impressive rise, from No. 122 at the start of 2025 to No. 27 today. In most ways, he has been a sort of second-tier Shelton. Tien is also a lefty, but he’s three years younger, five inches shorter, hits his serve 20 MPH slower, doesn’t have the same kind of explosive athleticism, and is ranked 20 spots lower.

Yet in their only meeting, last summer on grass in Mallorca, it was Tien who was the superior player and ball-striker. He was the one belting winners into the corners, closing points at net, and coming back from a break down in each set to win in straights.

Now Shelton has a chance for revenge, and to reassert his place in the American pecking order. But is he ready? In his three-set win over Reilly Opelka on Friday, he looked lethargic, and appeared to grab for his back at times. He was just a couple of points from defeat, and looked resigned to his fate, until Opelka rescued him with a few crucial misses.

Shelton could easily leave that performance in the rearview mirror and come out with guns blazing on Sunday afternoon in Stadium 1. But even so, Tien might be ready for him. Winner: Tien

Jannik Sinner vs. Denis Shapovalov

⏰ Estimated start time: 5:10 p.m. ET

👉 Stream live on the Tennis Channel app

You might think Shapovalov would be just the kind of guy that Sinner would feast on. The Canadian is a lefty, which means his serve and forehand hook right into Sinner’s excellent two-handed backhand. Shapovalov hits with a ton of pace, which Sinner thrives on. And Shapo’s low-margin attack leaves him vulnerable to cold streaks, something that the clinical Sinner almost never experiences.

Yet for all of that, Shapovalov has troubled Sinner in their two encounters. In 2021, he beat the Italian in a five-set first-rounder at the Australian Open. In 2025, at the US Open, Shapo took the first set 7-5, and pushed Sinner through the next three, before losing all of them. Both matches were exciting shot-making showcases. Last year, Shapo was helped having by little to lose at the start; he could take Sinner’s pace and tee off, without worrying too much about the consequences.

Are we in for a third barn-burner when they meet in Stadium 1 in the late afternoon on Sunday? Sinner was sharp in his opener, while Shapovalov has played some good tennis of late. He made the semifinals in Dallas, before losing 7-6 in the third to Ben Shelton. This week he has won two close matches, over Stefanos Tsitsipas and Tomás Etcheverry. If he’s on his game again, this will be fun, and possibly close. Winner: Sinner

Coco Gauff vs. Alex Eala

⏰ Estimated start time: 9:00 p.m. ET

👉 Stream live on the Tennis Channel app

The BNP Paribas Open shouldn’t have any trouble selling Stadium 1 tickets for its Sunday night-session opener. Gauff and Eala are two of the WTA’s most popular players, and Eala always brings a few thousand supporters with her. Technically, Gauff will be the home favorite, but it may not sound that way when Eala’s army makes themselves heard, and makes their Philippine flags seen.

Coco may not be looking forward to the crowd for this one, but she should feel confident against the opponent. These two met last month and Dubai, and it was one-way traffic for Gauff, 6-0, 6-2. She defended well against Eala’s flat pace, and felt good enough to swing big and impose her own aggressive power on the rallies. Eala seemed to help her find her best ground-stroke groove of the year so far, maybe because the ball was coming too fast for Coco to worry too much about what she was going to do with it.

Still, Eala, who survived an epic late-night slugfest with Dayana Yastremska on Friday, sounds happy to have an immediate rematch with Gauff. She has also shown, in her win over Iga Swiatek in Miami last year, that her low-margin baseline bombs can be effective against anyone.

“I’m excited,” she says. “It was a tough match for me last time. I think she played really well. So all I can do is take the learnings that I have from our last match and try to implement that in our next one.”

“I’m ready, and I'm looking forward to it.” Winner: Gauff