OPINION: Raducanu and Draper should be buoyed by Indian Wells runs
Carlos Alcaraz regained his place as the men's world number one after thrashing Daniil Medvedev in the final to cap off a flawless run at the tournement.
On the women's side, reigning Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina impressed by dropping just one set en route to seeing off hard-hitting Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka.
Along the way, we were given the chance to see Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper - two of Britain's brightest tennis starlets - give a very good account of themselves.
The pair reached the last 16 but were both eventually undone by the respective men's and women's top seeds in Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek.
But looking at the bigger picture, Raducanu and Draper can be encouraged by what they produced on the hard courts of California.
Starting with Raducanu, her run should give her a welcomed boost given the well-documented fitness issues she experienced in the first stages of the season.
Her campaign was affected early on when a sprained ankle in Aukland put her Australian Open chances under threat, before a bout of tonsillitis forced her withdrawal from the ATX Open in Austin - the tournament before Indian Wells.
Despite the less-than-ideal lead-up to the unofficial fifth Grand Slam, Raducanu won three rounds which included avenging a former defeat and beating two tricky opponents.
Raducanu saw off Danka Kovinic, who she lost to at last year's Australian Open, in the first round before coming through against Poland's Magda Linette.
She then faced a tough test against the world number 14 Beatriz Haddad Maia but triumphed in three sets to win 6-1, 2-6, 6-4 to set up an encounter against one-to-beat Swiatek.
Raducanu was unable to solve the Pole, who won 6-3, 6-1 although it was a good test for the 2021 US Open winner ahead of building some potential consistency.
"I think especially because of where I was before this tournament, didn't think I would even play, to be honest," Raducanu said. "But to have played and then won three rounds and beaten two amazing opponents, I'm very proud of myself."
A very similar story developed on the men's side for Draper.
The 21-year-old has been on an upward trajectory since making his ATP Tour main draw debut in 2021 but like Raducanu, he has also been followed by fitness issues.
Going blow for blow with Rafael Nadal in the first round at the Australian Open, cramp midway through the match all but ended his chances of claiming a scalp.
The top-seeded Spaniard took full advantage of a powerless but determined Draper to win 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1.
A two-month hiatus would see Draper back for Indian Wells, where he would return with a handful of respectable displays that should give him some encouragement.
He flew by Swiss qualifier Leandro Riedi to win 6-1, 6-1 in under an hour which would land him a second-round meeting with British compatriot Dan Evans, who he would dispatch in mature fashion.
A big third-round match-up with Andy Murray then awaited Draper, which the left-hander again negotiated well as he dipped into his arsenal of weapons to emerge victorious ahead of a meeting with Alcaraz.
Draper's demons would then come back to haunt him against the eventual champion with the young Briton being forced to retire at 6-2, 2-0 with an abdominal problem suffered in his win over Murray.
Indian Wells served as a good test for both Draper and Raducanu and the Miami Open should provide another opportunity for the pair to show what they can do.
Providing the former fit enough to make it, he is set to make his tournament debut while Raducanu will open her tournament against Canada's Bianca Andreescu.
