What's next for Yosuke Watanuki after his Indian Wells breakthrough?

At some point, Andy Roddick was known to say, a player will show you why they’re ranked where they’re ranked. Yosuke Watanuki—current ranking: No. 349—finally reached that point on Tuesday afternoon at Indian Wells.

Over the previous week, the 26-year-old native of Japan had won five matches, two of them over Top 20 opponents, Tomas Machac and Frances Tiafoe. Twelve games into his round of 16 match with Tallon Griekspoor, it looked as if win No. 6 was within his grasp.

Watanuki led 4-2 in the first-set tiebreaker. He had just won two straight points, one with a missile first serve, and another with a nifty forehand approach and volley winner. As the players changed sides, the 26-year-old’s brand-new fan club in Stadium 2 let out a particularly piercing version of the war cry that they had been unleashing all match. It appeared that this new and unlikely fan favorite, who had charmed audiences in the desert with his electrifying attack, his vaulting serve, his permanent smile and his addiction to Pepsi, was going to keep his magical run alive for another round.

And that’s when Watanuki’s Cinderella story came to a screeching halt. At 4-3, he had a look at a hanging forehand. For a week, he had taken this shot at the top of the bounce and pulverized it; this time, he hesitated, swung late, and sent it wide. At 4-4, he put a forehand into the net. At 4-5, he drilled a backhand into the net. And at 4-6, double set point for Griekspoor, Watanuki flipped a forehand wide for his fifth straight unforced error. He would win just one more game.

This doesn’t mean Watanuki showed us why he’s ranked 349th. He’s only that low because of the knee tendinitis that kept him out for much of 2024. What he did show, perhaps, is why his career high so far is No. 72. He plays a proactive game that requires exquisite timing and always borders on the low percentage. If his match against Griekspoor is any indication, it doesn’t take much for his timing to become something less than exquisite.

Judging from his other four matches at Indian Wells, though, Watanuki has a lot more upside that he has shown, even at his fairly advanced age. We’ve seen flashes of brilliance from him over the years. As a junior, he was ranked as high as No. 2 in the world. He has won eight lower-level titles in Japan, a round at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, and has made the quarters in Lyon. Maybe most significantly, he took a set from Tiafoe in Miami in 2023. During that loss, he watched Wayne Ferreira coach Tiafoe, and liked what he saw.

“I saw him there in the coaches’ box and I didn’t talk to him much after that, but I really liked how he watched the matches,” Watanuki said of Ferreira to ATPTour.com this weekend. “He’s a chill guy, very serious, but chill and looks like a nice guy. I asked people from the Japanese Association… they texted Wayne-san, I got the number and then I called.”

Ferreira played a big part in helping Tiafoe reach his potential. Could he do the same for Watanuki? Like Tiafoe was a few years ago, he’s a shot-maker in need of a plan.

Watanuki’s shot-making begins with his unique serve. His motion includes a hitch that’s reminiscent of Dodgers’ pitcher Clayton Kershaw, and ends with the 5-foot-11 Watanuki taking a step forward with each foot and launching himself into the court. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen that before, but it makes sense when you hear the sound of the ball coming off the strings, and watch his ace count climb.

“My left leg is not strong enough. My right leg is much stronger,” he said. “I’m not super tall, especially on the ATP Tour…So I try for more power and that’s the reason I want to use the power from the right leg.”

Watanuki is just as proactive with the rest of his game. He charges in behind his returns. He takes every ball he can on the rise. He has a confident touch around the net. He hit 47 winners in two sets against Tiafoe.

But it was his easy smile and sense of sportsmanship that may have endeared him most to fans. At one point, Tiafoe was given a warning for taking too long to serve; but Watanuki was quick to admit that the delay had been his fault, and take the punishment instead.

Next for Watanuki is a cross-country trip to play the Miami qualifiers. Maybe, if we’re lucky, he’ll soon be showing us why he’s ranked a whole lot higher than No. 349.