The women’s singles draw for Indian Wells is officially out — and Aryna Sabalenka is set to lead a stacked top half at the WTA 1000 event.
World No 1 Sabalenka is back in action for the first time since the Australian Open, and will start her Indian Wells campaign against either Alycia Parks or a qualifier in round two.
The two-time Indian Wells runner-up could then face 29th seed Maja Joint in round three, before a potential fourth round versus 16th seed Naomi Osaka, a fellow four-time Grand Slam champion.
Osaka is also in action for the first time since the Australian Open, having pulled out midway through the event due to injury.
Sabalenka could then face a quarter-final against sixth seed Amanda Anisimova and a semi-final against fourth seed Coco Gauff, two women she has forged significant rivalries with in recent years.
Anisimova could face 25th seed and close friend Emma Raducanu in the third round, before a potential fourth round clash against 10th seed Victoria Mboko.
Gauff could face 2019 champion Bianca Andreescu in round two, and then 31st seed Alex Eala in round three, a rematch of their Dubai Championships clash from last month.
The fourth seed is later projected to face seventh seed Jasmine Paolini in the quarter-final, before a potential meeting against top seed and world No 1 Sabalenka.
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The bottom half of the draw is perhaps most notable for pitting second seed Iga Swiatek and eighth seed Mirra Andreeva in the same quarter, twelve months after Andreeva beat the world No 2 on her way to the title.
Swiatek could face 32nd seed Maria Sakkari — who she beat in the 2022 and 2024 Indian Wells final — in round three, and could then face a tough fourth round versus 13th seed Karolina Muchova.
The Pole is then projected to face reigning champion Andreeva in the last eight, though the Russian does not have the kindest of draws early on.
Andreeva could face 27th seed Leylah Fernandez in the third round, before a projected round four against ninth seed Elina Svitolina — who beat her in the fourth round of the Australian Open in January.
Either Swiatek or Andreeva could potentially face third seed and reigning Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina in the semi-final, with the Kazakh looking to regain the Indian Wells title she won in 2023.
Rybakina could face 28th seed Marta Kostyuk and then face a tough fourth round versus 15th seed Madison Keys, who was a semi-finalist at this event twelve months ago.
The Kazakh is then projected to face a quarter-final versus fifth seed and recent Dubai champion Jessica Pegula, who — like Rybakina — has been in fine form so far in 2026.
However, the American does not have an easy draw in Tennis Paradise, with Pegula potentially set to face 26th seed Jelena Ostapenko in round three and then 12th seed Belinda Bencic in round four.
Projected women’s singles quarter-finals
(1) Aryna Sabalenka vs (6) Amanda Anisimova
(4) Coco Gauff vs (7) Jasmine Paolini
(5) Jessica Pegula vs (3) Elena Rybakina
(8) Mirra Andreeva vs (2) Iga Swiatek
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The post WTA Indian Wells Draw: Sabalenka leads stacked top half with Gauff, Anisimova, Raducanu, Eala & Mboko appeared first on Tennis365.
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