Matches will see more abrupt stoppages and longer on-court interruptions, changing player routines and scheduling for the tournament. Friday at 4: 08 p. m. ET a chair umpire ended the second-round match after a video review found Luciano Darderi had hindered Rinky Hijikata, a decision that directly affected third-round lineups at indian wells tennis 2026.
Video review ends Rinky Hijikata–Luciano Darderi match
The immediate consequence was decisive: Rinky Hijikata was awarded the match when the chair umpire ruled that Luciano Darderi had hindered play late in the deciding set. The point sequence reached 5-4, 40-15 in Hijikata’s favor in the third set when Darderi hoisted a lob, then pointed and halted play; an audible spectator call of “Oh my God” is present on match audio. After the umpire stopped the point and ordered video review, the chair umpire concluded Darderi’s interruption constituted hindrance and the match ended with Hijikata advancing.
Ball delivery delay halts Clara Tauson match; Dunlop change highlighted
Another direct change to scheduling came when play stopped for about 15 minutes because new balls were not available for Clara Tauson and Yulia Putintseva, pausing Tauson at 4-3 before serve. Tournament rules noted in play require a ball change after the warm-up and the first seven games, then every nine games thereafter; the delivery delay preceded Tauson’s eventual 7-6, 6-2 win. Players have already discussed the tournament’s switch from Penn to Dunlop balls, and the lack of immediate ball delivery made that equipment shift a visible cause of disruption for Tauson and Putintseva.
Indian Wells Tennis 2026 week one: player moments, delays and Australian surge
Spectator engagement and unusual stoppages punctuated week one: Carlos Alcaraz’s fan interactions and Grigor Dimitrov’s stadium showmanship were among the sights, while Alexandra Eala and Dayana Yastremska produced a 2-hour, 47-minute match won 7-5, 4-6, 7-5. On the men’s side, Rinky Hijikata’s win over world No. 21 Luciano Darderi and a near-simultaneous Alex de Minaur victory meant four Australians — Hijikata, de Minaur, Talia Gibson and Ajla Tomljanovic — reached the third round, the first time that has happened at Indian Wells since the edition referenced two decades earlier.
Still, equipment and procedural hiccups forced courtside adjustments: Mirra Andreeva’s match with Solana Sierra was delayed while a net was replaced, and multiple matches reflected sharper contrasts between new and old balls after the Penn-to-Dunlop switch. One tangible effect is that players had longer warm-up windows or unexpected breaks; Tauson resumed play after the ball delivery and closed out her match, while Hijikata’s opponent status changed abruptly when the hindrance review ended his second-round match.
Hijikata’s advancement came on the back of a comeback from 4-6, 6-2, 5-4 (40-15) and marked his first win over a top-25 player in a completed match; he joins de Minaur in the tournament’s last 32. Hijikata’s run also increased attention on his next opponent: he is scheduled to face the winner of the match between 10th seed Alexander Bublik and lucky loser Vit Kopriva in the third round.
What could reverse or accelerate these consequences is a procedural clarification from officials on when umpires should call for video review and how ball deliveries are managed on-site. The immediate next slate of matches includes Hijikata’s third-round opponent: the winner of Alexander Bublik vs. Vit Kopriva. If Hijikata wins that third-round match, he will advance to the fourth round; the timing and court assignment for that match were not confirmed as of publication.
