Bravely reversing the tide, Learner Tien first reaches the quarterfinals at Indian Wells.

This tennis player, whose parents once lived in Vietnam, is performing exceptionally well at the first ATP 1000 tournament of the year.

The young American talent with parents who once lived in Vietnam - Learner Tien (world No. 27) excellently secured a spot in the quarterfinals of the ATP 1000 Indian Wells 2026 after a comeback victory of 4-6; 6-1; 7-6 against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (No. 19) in the early morning of March 11 Vietnam time.

Not rated higher due to a lower ATP ranking and past head-to-head results not favoring him (Tien had lost to Fokina at the DC Open 2025), the American player, with home advantage, still competed confidently. His improved serve helped him hold all his service games without facing any break-points, while also posing significant challenges to Fokina through his intelligent ball placement.

Just when set 1 was balanced and likely to be decided by a tie-break, Tien unexpectedly faced two breaks and only saved one, losing a crucial service game and allowing Fokina to win 6-4.

Nevertheless, in set 2, Learner Tien came back strongly. The 2005-born player quickly secured a break in the opponent's first service game, then excellently maintained the advantage, even gaining another break-point to win decisively 6-1, pushing the match into a decisive third set.

Here, Tien went through a challenging period. He saved a break in game 4, then even faced two match-points in game 10 but brilliantly escaped. This precisely helped the mentality of the reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion become more solid, especially during the tie-break, and even more so against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina - a player known to falter at critical moments.

The dramatic three-set victory over the Spanish opponent sends Learner Tien into the quarterfinals of Indian Wells - the first time in his career, where he is likely to face the current world No. 2 Jannik Sinner, who will meet Joao Fonseca in a match occurring on the morning of March 11 Vietnam time.

Tien and Sinner have met once in the final of the China Open 2025, where Sinner easily won after two sets with the same score of 6-2.