This article is part of our Tennis Picks series.
The third round of the BNP Paribas Open begins Sunday from the hard courts of Indian Wells, California. Everyone in action here has won at least one match to get to this point. A former Indian Wells champion is in position to add to his success here, while a pair of lesser-known players who have been winning plenty of matches recently will look to keep riding the wave. One American favorite in the women's draw should continue to take care of business, while another could face a stiff test against a fellow talented teenager. All Tennis Odds & Lines are taken from DraftKings Sportsbook, but you can sometimes find more favorable odds on some of these matches by checking mobile sportsbooks such as FanDuel Sportsbook, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, or any of the other best sports betting sites. We offer exclusive sign-up bonuses for some of those sportsbooks, as well as specific bonuses for users located in Massachusetts, where online sports betting has officially gone live.
All matches at the BNP Paribas Open are best of three sets, which is the case for all ATP Masters 1000 and WTA 1000 level tournaments. A mix of players' previous hard court results, recent form and stylistic matchups can help pinpoint intriguing betting opportunities, both among favorites likely to cruise to victory and underdogs ready to pull off upsets. The aforementioned underdogs are highlighted in the Upset Alert section, the Lock It In section covers players who can safely be considered overwhelming favorites, while the Value Bets section recommends enticing options in matchups that are considered closer to toss-ups.
Indian Wells Picks: Upset Alert
Emil Ruusuvuori (+215) vs. Alexander Zverev
Ruusuvuori has gotten through the first two rounds without dropping a set, and the 23-year-old Finn is coming off a nice win over No. 22 seed Roberto Bautista Agut. He won the only previous encounter with Zverev on the hard courts of Miami in 2021, and Ruusuvuori will be facing a version of Zverev that has yet to regain the form he showed before suffering a major ankle injury last year. Zverev's just 7-7 in 2023, and five of those seven losses have come against opponents ranked outside the top 50.
Linda Noskova (+255) vs. Coco Gauff
Not to be confused with Linda Fruhvirtova, Noskova is the other rapidly ascending Czech teenager named Linda. Noskova has already beaten two top-10 players on hard courts this year, as she took out Daria Kasatkina and Ons Jabeur in Adelaide, knocking off Victoria Azarenka as well en route to the final there. Gauff is the far more accomplished of these two 18-year-olds, but this is an opportunity for Noskova to really put her name on the map.
Honorable Mention
Anhelina Kalinina (+160) vs. Maria Sakkari
Indian Wells Odds: Lock It In
Cameron Norrie (-425) vs. Taro Daniel
Norrie loves the conditions at this tournament. He won it in 2021 for the only Masters 1000 title of his career, then followed that result with a solid quarterfinal showing in 2022 before losing to Carlos Alcaraz. Norrie's also in fine form at the moment, with an 11-1 record over his last 12 matches. The 12th-ranked Brit should add to his success at Indian Wells against his 103rd-ranked opponent, who is just 41-64 on hard courts in his career.
Jessica Pegula (-475) vs. Anastasia Potapova
Pegula simply doesn't lose to players she isn't supposed to. Since the start of the US Open, the world No. 3 is 26-9, with six of those losses coming against top-10 opponents. The other three defeats came against former Grand Slam champions Petra Kvitova, Victoria Azarenka and Barbora Krejcikova. The 28th-ranked Potapova is far less accomplished than any of the players who have beaten Pegula recently, and Potapova's last win over a top-30 opponent came back in July.
Honorable Mention
Andrey Rublev (-390) vs. Ugo Humbert
Indian Wells Predictions: Value Bets
Jordan Thompson (-130) vs. Alejandro Tabilo
Thompson has already beaten two household names here in Gael Monfils and Stefanos Tsitsipas. While neither of those players were in peak form, Thompson will still be brimming with confidence from those results, especially after winning a challenger in his previous event heading into the BNP Paribas Open. The world No. 87 is also ranked exactly 100 spots ahead of Tabilo, whose last win against an opponent ranked better than No. 90 prior to this tournament came back in June at Wimbledon.
Rebecca Peterson (+110) vs. Jil Teichmann
This is a terrific opportunity for both of these unseeded women, but Peterson is better positioned to grab it by the horns. She's 14-2 in her last 16 matches, though most of those wins have come in qualifying or ITF matches. Still, all those wins have translated to plenty of confidence, which is paramount in tennis. Teichmann is ranked 64 spots ahead of Peterson at No. 39, but she came into this tournament with a 3-5 record in her previous eight matches, with two of those losses coming to players ranked outside the top 85.
Honorable Mention
Karen Khachanov (-130) vs. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
