The BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, even referred to as “Tennis Paradise,” has been known to produce some high octane clashes in the tournament. Some even argue that it’s the “Fifth Major” on the tour. This year’s tournament produced something off court, which turned out to be hilarious.

They created a spoof skit featuring some of the biggest tennis stars playing at the tournament. The skit was based on the mockery of tennis players’ routine, which was presented in a sarcastic manner, where the players are teaching five lucky fans the quirky routines and antics of pro tennis players, defining it as “playing like pros.”

The skit was headed by the 5-time BNP Paribas Open Champion, Novak Djokovic, who played the role of the course leader and gave narrations in the video from time to time. He introduced each segment and gave his take on each tennis ritual and explained the ‘curriculum.’

First up, Alexander Bublik, who is known for smashing rackets and the aggression he portrays on court, taught fans how precisely a racket could be broken into pieces. Later in the video, he even taught how to check the sound of the strings by patting them with the palm.

Tommy Paul took a more methodical approach, teaching fans the right number of times to bounce balls before serving, something which players use to get into a rhythm. Fellow American, Emma Navarro gave a masterclass on how to meticulously arrange water bottles during changeovers, while focusing on the precision and symmetry, largely inspired by Rafael Nadal.

33-year-old Bulgarian, Grigor Dimitrov, showed fans the process of choosing the right balls before every serve. The process is whichever one you like, as all the balls are the same. Alex de Minaur, also known as ‘demon’ for his speed, added more fun by teaching the typical way of players eating bananas. He showed the standard technique of players peeling the banana into three peels.

World No. 3, Coco Gauff took charge of teaching the fan engagement, especially focusing on taking a perfect selfie. She engaged with fans and suggested some poses as well. Danish star Holger Rune took the class on the post-match tradition of signing the camera lens after every win. He pushed the participants to be creative in their signs and gave them feedback to improve in this aspect of the game.

38-year-old French veteran, Gael Monfils, taught the invitees the importance and the procedure of blowing air in the hands before starting the point. He gave the example of Roger Federer and credited him for doing it in the best way. Two-time Indian Wells finalist Maria Sakkari taught the art of adjusting the racket strings between points and made sure that everyone did it correctly.

World No. 1, Aryna Sabalenka showed fans how to blow kisses to the audience in her trademark style. Former World No. 2, Ons Jabeur wrapped up the session by giving some on-court tips to the lucky participants. She taught from which direction to approach the chair during changeovers and how to place a hand towel on your knees in a way the pros usually do.

The skit was filled with all the unique, quirky habits of professional tennis players, which is quite common between most of them. The skit has already gained a lot of traction and garnered attention among the non-tennis watchers as well. The video has already surpassed 300k views and 3k likes on X within just 19 hours of its posting.

Journey of Novak Djokovic, Coco Gauff and Emma Navarro at the Indian Wells 2025

Novak Djokovic, the sixth seed, who was coming back from a hamstring injury which he picked up at the Australian Open, went down in the second round against Botic van de Zandschulp in three sets 2-6, 6-3, 1-6. One positive outcome from the match was that he was able to move freely on the court and there were no injury-related hindrances.

Coco Gauff stands tall at the Indian Wells as she reached the fourth round by defeating Maria Sakkari in straight sets. The third seed, who received a bye in the first round, overcame Moyuka Uchijima in three hard-fought sets in her first match. The American will take on Belinda Bencic in the round of 16 as she looks to book her place in the last eight on her home turf.

Emma Navarro, the fourth top-ten seeded American, lost to 19th seed Donna Vekic in the third round in straight sets 6-7(5), 1-6. She had received a first round bye due to her rankings before she overcame Romanian Sorana Cirstea in the round of 64. The World No. 8 had entered the tournament with high hopes as she had lifted the Merida Open title a few days before the start of the WTA 1000 tournament.