Luca Nardi: All You Need to Know About the Lucky Loser Who Defeated Novak Djokovic at Indian Wells

• Luca Nardi recorded the biggest win of his career at Indian Wells on Monday night
• The 20-year-old defeated Novak Djokovic in three sets to advance to the fourth round
• Nardi qualified for the Indian Wells main draw as the tournament's lucky loser

No one saw that coming.

Luca Nardi played the match of his life on Monday, beating World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the third round of the 2024 BNP Paribas Open.

Here's all you need to know about the tennis world's newest star.

Who is Luca Nardi?

Nardi was born on August 6, 2003, in Pesaro, Italy.

He made a name for himself in the junior ranks, playing against rising stars such as now two-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz.

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The Italian made his main draw debut in the ATP at the 2020 European Open. He lost to Marcos Giron in the men's singles event in three sets. He also participated in the doubles event, forming a partnership with Zane Khan.

He made great strides in 2021, reaching career-high rankings in both singles (World No. 356) and doubles (World No. 544) on December 13.

He achieved those career highs after reaching the semifinals of the singles tournament at the 2021 Città di Forlì III Challenger as well as the quarter-finals of the doubles event.

Nardi's tennis career further took off in 2022, capturing four Challenger titles. He won the Città di Forlì Challenger in January 2022 to enter the top 300 for the first time in his career.

One of his Challenger titles came at the Rafa Nadal Open in Mallorca, the first time he won on an outdoor hard court.

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He also recorded several firsts in 2022. He made his much-awaited Masters debut as a wildcard at the 2022 Rome Masters.

He also won his first ATP match at the ATP 500 Astana Open that same year, beating Alexander Shevchenko in the first round.

He nearly recorded a major upset in the second round, pushing No. 3 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas to a pair of tie-breakers.

Nardi continued making waves in 2023, recording his first Masters win at Monte-Carlo after beating wildcard Valentin Vacherot. He also qualified for the Next Generation ATP Finals after another strong year on the tennis courts.

Nardi stuns Djokovic at Indian Wells

All of Nardi's hard work paid off big time at the 2024 BNP Paribas Open.

He qualified for the main draw at Indian Wells as the tournament's lucky loser and was rewarded with an epic clash with 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic.

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He didn't back down from the challenge, producing the greatest performance of his young career. He defeated Djokovic in three sets, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to advance to the fourth round.

It was a historic win for Nardi, who became the first lucky loser to beat Djokovic in an ATP Masters 1000 event.

No titles in 2024 for Djokovic

Djokovic has yet to win a tournament this year.

Sports Brief previously reported on Jannik Sinner beating Djokovic in the Australian Open semis.

The Italian star eased past the World No. 1 in four sets at Rod Laver Arena.