The Indian Wells Open is on to the Round of 16. One of the most anticipated matches of the day sees World No. 3 Novak Djokovic face the World No. 14 Jack Draper. The match is expected to begin around 9:00. p.m. ET.
Djokovic is -142 on the moneyline, while Draper is +116. This is my best bet to target on DraftKings Sportsbook for the Djokovic vs. Draper match.
Novak Djokovic vs. Jack Draper Preview
Jack Draper is one of the rising stars in men’s tennis over the last couple of years. Last season, Draper got as high as No. 4 in the world at just 23 years old after winning Indian Wells. However, Draper had lingering injury issues that took him out of competition at the end of last season and flared back up at the start of this season. That injury caused him to pull out of the 2026 Australian Open. Draper appeared in Dubai in the lead-up to Indian Wells, which was his first ATP match since the 2025 US Open. If Draper can get healthy again, he is one of the best players in the world. The sky is the limit with his talent; he just needs to find a level of consistency with his health.
Novak Djokovic is the greatest player this sport has ever seen. Djokovic showed he can still compete with the best in the world by upsetting Jannik Sinner in the 2026 Australian Open semifinals. He hasn’t won a major since 2023, as he has struggled against Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz the last couple of years. However, Djokovic has made it to at least the semifinals in 11 of the past 13 majors. He is consistently great in big tournaments, which is why he remains the No. 3 player in the world. Indian Wells is one of the many tournaments where Djokovic has dominated over the years, with five career titles here. However, he has not won Indian Wells since 2016. Djokovic has not even made it out of the Round of 16 at Indian Wells since he last won the tournament.
Novak Djokovic vs. Jack Draper Pick, Best Bet
My best bet for this match is on Jack Draper to win. Draper loves playing at Indian Wells. He announced himself on the scene in many ways at Indian Wells in 2023. He defeated fellow Brits Dan Evans and Andy Murray in back-to-back matches to make it to the Round of 16. Draper had to retire with an injury in that Round of 16 match against Carlos Alcaraz, which he looked like he was going to lose anyway. Last year, Draper won Indian Wells, his first and only ATP 1000 title of his career. He defeated four of the best players in the world – Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton and Holger Rune – en route to that title.
Jack Draper will have no fear against Novak Djokovic. These two have only faced off once before, and it came all the way back in 2021 in the Round of 128 at Wimbledon. At the time, Draper was just 19 years old and playing in his first career main draw match at a Grand Slam. He was forced to take on the best player in the world at center court for that huge moment. Draper came out and stole the first set against Djokovic, proving even then how immense his talent was. Draper should come full circle and defeat Novak Djokovic here at Indian Wells to continue his quest to defend his title.
