"Best time of the year" - Taylor Fritz elated to commence his title defense in front of home crowd at Indian Wells 2023

Taylor Fritz is currently gearing up to defend the most important title of his career yet – the Indian Wells 2023. The American No. 1 is back on the tournament ground.

He recently expressed his excitement about contesting the Sunshine Double, which includes two ATP Masters tournaments starting with Indian Wells, followed by the Miami Open.

Taking to social media, Taylor Fritz declared that it was his favorite time of the year, sharing a picture of both tournament grounds.

“Best time of the year,” the 25-year-old wrote on Instagram.

Taylor Fritz’s 2022 Indian Wells win was one for the history books. The SoCal native created numerous highlights, with one being, winning the trophy in front of his home crowd. The tennis player also became the first American to lift the trophy after a gap of 21 years since Andre Agassi in 2001.

On his way to the final, Fritz registered notable wins over Alex de Minaur in the fourth round and Andre Rublev in the semi-finals. More remarkable, however, was his victory over Rafael Nadal in the final, where he played with a foot injury (as revealed in the Netflix documentary series Break Point).

By winning the title, the 25-year-old handed Nadal his first defeat of the 2022 season and snapped the tennis legend’s 20-match winning streak.

The stunning victory propelled the American inside the Top-15 of the ATP rankings for the first time in his career. This was just the start of a phenomenal season, which saw him clinch two more titles in Eastbourne and Tokyo and break inside the World’s Top 10.

Taylor Fritz then went on to feature in his maiden ATP Finals after the then World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz withdrew from the tournament. He made good use of the given opportunity and made the semifinals at the coveted event.

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Taylor Fritz will look to clinch his second title of the 2023 season at Indian Wells

Taylor Fritz has witnessed a generally positive start to his 2023 campaign. The American, who kicked off the season at the United Cup, triumphed in all but one encounter at the tournament and hoisted the trophy with the American team.

Although he faltered at the Australian Open, exiting in Round 2, Fritz bounced back quickly to make the semi-finals of the Dallas Open, before lifting his fifth career title at the Delray Beach Open.

The World No. 5 will feature in Indian Wells on the back of a semi-final finish at the Mexican Open. Having been seeded, he will directly contest the second round at the event, where he awaits the winner of Ben Shelton vs Fabio Fognini.