Defending champion Swiatek dominates; Rybakina powers through at Indian Wells
Defending champion Iga Swiatek cruised past Dayana Yastremska 6-0, 6-2, while 2023 winner Elena Rybakina powered past Britain’s Katie Boulter 6-0, 7-5, both advancing to the fourth round of Indian Wells on Sunday with commanding performances.
Seeded second, Swiatek is aiming for her third tournament title, a feat no woman has achieved before. The Polish star wasted no time, winning 10 straight games and dispatching her Ukrainian opponent in just 65 minutes.
“At the end, I got a bit tired, it’s always tough to finish a match like that, but I’m happy I maintained my intensity to close it out,” Swiatek said. “I had control from the start, so I’m really pleased with my performance.”
The victory marked Swiatek’s second bagel set of the tournament after she dominated Caroline Garcia 6-2, 6-0 in her opener.
Despite her strong showing, the five-time major champion has not won a title since her 2024 French Open victory, marking her longest drought since claiming her first major in 2020.
Swiatek served a one-month suspension in October for a failed drug test and has seen Aryna Sabalenka take her world No. 1 ranking. But the California desert seems to be an ideal setting for her to return to winning ways.
“It’s amazing, I love coming here,” she said. “I already have my routine, so it feels like home. It’s for sure the place to be and a great place to play tennis.”
Swiatek will face 15th seed Karolina Muchova in the round of 16 after the Czech player defeated Katerina Siniakova earlier in the day.
Rybakina rallies, Svitolina upsets Collins
After cruising through the first set, Rybakina fell behind 5-3 in the second before regrouping. The Kazakh player delivered a sensational defensive shot in a game where she broke back to level at 5-5, then broke again on match point to seal the win.
Rybakina, who missed last year’s tournament due to illness, will meet ninth-seeded teenager Mirra Andreeva in a rematch of their Dubai semifinal, which the Russian won in three sets en route to becoming the youngest player to win a WTA 1000 title.
Andreeva, coached by former Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez, said the 17-year-old keeps her focused.
“She already told me that she booked a court at 12 p.m.,” Andreeva said after her night match. “I see not much time passed from the match … she’s just like this, but it’s not bad.”
Ukrainian Elina Svitolina upset 14th seed Danielle Collins 6-2, 6-4, and will face another American, fourth-seeded Jessica Pegula, who breezed past China’s Wang Xinyu 6-2, 6-1.
Svitolina’s countrywoman Marta Kostyuk defeated American wild card Caroline Dolehide 6-3, 6-3.
Medvedev, Tsitsipas advance
On the men’s side, Stefanos Tsitsipas showed off his impressive athleticism and defense, leaping for overheads and speeding around the court to defeat Italy’s Matteo Berrettini 6-3, 6-3.
“I’m approaching these matches with determination and willingness to just leave it all out there on the court,” Tsitsipas said. “I want to get out there and be a gladiator, and that’s how I approach every single match I get to play.”
The Greek eighth seed will face battle-tested Holger Rune, who dug deep to outlast Frenchman Ugo Humbert 5-7, 6-4, 7-5 with the backing of the crowd on center court.
“I tried to be brave,” Rune said of his play over the final two games of the match. “The energy on this court was truly amazing.”
Daniil Medvedev was on court for just 10 minutes before his American opponent Alex Michelsen was forced to retire due to illness after two games.
The Russian fifth seed has lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the Indian Wells final the past two years, and the Spaniard is once again on the opposite side of the draw.
Medvedev will next face popular American Tommy Paul, who notched his 50th win at a Masters 1000 tournament with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Britain’s Cameron Norrie.
Unheralded Japanese player Yosuke Watanuki was all smiles after upsetting American Frances Tiafoe 6-4, 7-6(6) to notch the biggest win of his career.
“I tried to enjoy today,” said Watanuki, who is ranked world No. 349. “Even though I missed a terrible backhand, it is Indian Wells, center court. So even though I missed, I was happy.”
Tallon Griekspoor stunned 29th-seeded Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard on Sunday after knocking out top seed Alexander Zverev in the previous round.
Griekspoor pounded 10 aces and broke Mpetshi Perricard’s mighty serve twice en route to the win.
Southern California native Marcos Giron came from behind to beat Alexei Popyrin 5-7, 6-3, 6-3 in a match where the struggling Australian converted just one of his 15 break point chances.
It was the 31-year-old Giron’s first time reaching the fourth round of the tournament.
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