INDIAN WELLS, Calif., March 3, 2016 – Eight Americans, along with two-time BNP Paribas Open Champion Daniela Hantuchova and former British No. 1 Heather Watson, were awarded wildcards into the BNP Paribas Open, to be held March 7-20 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, it was announced today by CEO Raymond Moore.

Americans who were granted wildcards into the main draws include Rajeev Ram, who reached the finals of Delray Beach last month; Frances Tiafoe, the youngest player in Top 200 of the ATP World Tour rankings; Mackenzie McDonald, a former collegiate standout at UCLA and Pac-12 Player of the Year; Samantha Crawford, who reached the semifinals at Brisbane in January; Alison Riske, who reached the finals at Shenzen earlier this season; Lauren Davis, who reached the third round of the 2016 Australian Open; Jamie Loeb, who won the 2015 NCAA Singles title at the University of North Carolina; and Shelby Rogers, who reached the finals at Rio de Janeiro in February.

Grand Slam Champion Juan Martin del Potro, American Taylor Fritz and Australian Open quarterfinalist Zhang Shuai were previously awarded wildcards into the main draw.

Grand Slam Champions Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, Ana Ivanovic and Petra Kvitova were granted wildcards into the doubles draws. Murray teams with Colin Fleming, Wawrinka pairs with Mahesh Bhupathi, Ivanovic partners with Kirsten Flipkens, and Kvitova will play with Denisa Allertova.

“Wildcards present an opportunity to give both talented veterans and up-and-coming players the opportunity to compete in the BNP Paribas Open,” said Moore. “From Americans to a Grand Slam Champion to a two-time BNP Paribas Open Champion, we are excited about the players we have added to the field. In addition, we are thrilled to continue the tradition of fans having the chance to watch some of the top ranked singles players in the doubles competition with Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, Ana Ivanovic and Petra Kvitova getting wildcards.”

Qualifying wildcards were given to Americans Michael Mmoh, Ernesto Escobedo, Jessica Pegula, Sachia Vickery and Raveena Kingsley, and Slovakia’s Jana Cepelova.

Mmoh is an 18-year-old American who reached the second round of the 2014 US Open’s Men’s Doubles; 19-year-old Southern California native Escobedo will compete in his first BNP Paribas Open Qualifying Event in 2016 after earning a career-high ranking earlier this year; Slovakia native Cepelova reached World No. 50 in 2014, and advanced to the second round of the 2016 Australian Open as a qualifier; Pegula had her best Grand Slam showing last year at the 2015 US Open, where she reached the Round of 16; Vickery, a former USTA National Junior Singles Champion, advanced to the second round of the 2015 BNP Paribas Open and 17-year-old Kingsley, one of the top high school recruits in the country who signed a National Letter of Intent to play at LSU this fall. 

There are also three more men’s and two more women’s qualifying draw wildcards to be distributed. Two of those qualifying wildcards will be given to the men’s and women’s winners of the BNP Paribas Open Challenge, the pre-qualifying event for the tournament.

For more information, and to purchase tickets, visit www. bnpparibasopen.com, call 800-999-1585 or 760-200-8000, or visit the box office at 78-200 Miles Avenue, Indian Wells, CA, 92 210.

About the BNP Paribas Open

The BNP Paribas Open is the largest ATP World Tour and WTA combined two-week event in the world, and is held annually at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The site underwent a significant expansion in 2014 that included a new permanent Stadium 2 with 8,000  seats and three restaurants, including world-renowned Nobu; four more practice courts, an additional 19,000  square foot shade structure, and more. The tournament offers more than $10 million in prize money, and is the only event to provide the Hawkeye line challenge system on all match courts, including qualifying rounds. In 2015, more than 456,000  people attended the event. For more information or to purchase tickets visit www. bnpparibasopen.com, call 800-999-1585 or visit the Indian Wells Tennis Garden box office at 78-200 Miles Avenue, Indian Wells, CA, 92 210.