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Rafael Nadal will face a clash with former Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic on his return to action at the BNP Paribas Open, live on Sky Sports.
The Spaniard, a three-time winner at Indian Wells, is making only his second appearance of the year after reaching the quarter-finals of an ATP 250 event in Brisbane in the first week of the season.
That marked Nadal’s return from a hip flexor injury which had sidelined him for nearly a year, although he was then forced to miss the Australian Open due to a muscle tear.
The 37-year-old was a finalist at Indian Wells on his last appearance at the desert venue two years ago and if he successfully navigates his match against Raonic, he faces a showdown with No 7 seed Holger Rune in round two.
Elsewhere in the men’s draw, Andy Murray has a potential clash with No 5 seed Andrey Rublev on the horizon if he wins his first-round match against a yet-to-be-determined qualifier.
Murray’s fellow Brits Dan Evans and Jack Draper have been drawn against Roman Safiullin and Christopher O’Connell respectively.
Evans’ potential second-round opponent is No 28 seed Sebastian Korda, while victory for Draper would set up a meeting with No 6 seed Alexander Zverev.
Meanwhile, 2021 men’s singles champion Cam Norrie will take on either Lorenzo Sonego or Miomir Kecmanovic after receiving a bye to the second round due to being seeded No 28.
In the women’s tournament, Emma Raducanu will take on a yet-to-be-determined qualifier for the right to face No 30 seed Dayana Yastremska in the second round after being handed a wildcard entry.
Katie Boulter, winner of last week’s San Diego Open, has not earned a bye and therefore plays Italy’s Camilia Georgi in the first round, with the winner of that match up against No 26 seed Linda Noskova.
Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight showdown with Francis Ngannou takes place on Friday March 8, live on Sky Sports Box Office with the main event expected around 11pm.
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