Players coming to the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells often find themselves on some of the pristine golf courses in the area. Golf isn’t Daniil Medvedev’s thing, but the 29-year-old has found another pastime — car racing at the nearby Thermal Club.

“It's just unbelievable,” said Medvedev, who has been known to drive fast. “So every time I try to go there at least once before the tournament. “And in case the tournament doesn’t work out well, I’m there every day.”

The tournament has worked out well for the 2021 US Open champion in recent years. He is coming off back to back finals, stopped only by the golf-loving Carlos Alcaraz.

If he feels more comfortable in the desert, that might partly be due to the father or two staying at a home rather than a hotel. The set up is similar for many players at Wimbledon. “We have a house, and it's just a nice feeling with the team,” said Medvedev. “We play pool during the evenings. We cook. Yeah, just now I absolutely love coming here.” Whether that translates to another extended stay in Tennis Paradise remains to be seen

Unusually for Medvedev, he enters the tournament without reaching a final beforehand. The last time that happened? In 2016, when he played mostly Challengers as part of his progression up the tennis ladder. Next Gen Californian Learner Tien outlasted Medvedev in five sets in the second round at the Australian Open and his last final remains Indian Wells in 2024. He also parted company with French co-coach Gilles Simon, the counterpuncher extraordinaire.

Medvedev, though, isn’t panicking. He expects the close matches he’s lost this season — besides the one to Tien, Tallon Griekspoor edged him in Dubai and Mattia Bellucci narrowly prevailed in Rotterdam — to fall in his favor at some point.

“I feel like this year I had three matches where it was really close and could have gone my way, didn't go my way,” said Medvedev. “The guys played a good or whatever, tennis match, and I don't think there was one match where I could kind of say the same for me where luck was a little bit on my side and I got a little bit like lucky — 7-6 in the third or something like this. “This match is going to happen at one point in the season for me also, and that's when the momentum is going to change."

“So the beginning of the season was not like usual, but I'm going to try here to win the tournament. If not, it's in Miami,” he added, referring to the second leg of the Sunshine Double. “If not, it's clay. You keep going, you keep working.”

Medvedev plays his opener on Friday against China’s baseline slugger, Yunchaokete Bu.