This promises to be a stellar round of 16 tie. Former Wimbledon champ Elena Rybakina hasn’t had the smoothest campaign thus far.
2025 WTA Tour
WTA 1000
Indian Wells Open
Indian Wells Tennis Garden, California (Outdoor Hardcourt)
Selected Round of 16 Matches- 12th March
Elena Rybakina (7) 0.88 vs Mirra Andreeva (9) 0.9
Yet to win a title, the big-hitting Kazakh has had several off-court issues to deal with. The suspension of former coach Stefanis Vukic still resonates, with Goran Ivanisevic calling quits on their coaching arrangement at the end of the Aussie Open. Still, she has hardly disgraced herself this season, improving to 15-5 following her comfortable straight-sets win over Katie Boulter. She served like a demon against the Brit, winning 85% of her first-serve points whilst serving five aces. She is yet to drop a set this week and appears extremely comfortable on the new surfaces (whatever speed they are playing). Rybakina won this title back in 2023 and cannot be discounted this time around. However, her next assignment pits her against the person who recently eliminated her in the Dubai semis: Mirra Andreeva.
Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva is the current flavour of the month, having just captured her maiden WTA 1000 title in Dubai. She was magnificent in Dubai, taking down the likes of Swiatek and Rybakina en route to the title. The victory took her to 9th in the world rankings (making her the youngest woman in eighteen years to break into the top ten). She credits improved mental fortitude for her meteoric rise. Considered a purely defensive baseliner in her early years on tour, Andreeva is gradually becoming more proactive. She is one of the best returners on tour and her serve has improved exponentially (she has served the 7th most aces this year on tour). She is currently on an eight-math winning streak, winning both of her Indian Wells Masters in straight sets. She was particularly severe against Clara Tauson in her round of 32 win (which was a replay of the Dubai final). She outmaneuvered the Dane at every turn, winning 75% of her first-serve points as she sauntered to a 6-3, 6-0 win. Still just 17 years of age, the sky appears to be the limit for this graceful Russian talent.
The Verdict: Rybakina to win in three at 3.6- These two share the head-to-head spoils at one win apiece, with Andreeva obviously winning their most recent meeting in Dubai. One would think that these windy conditions would favour rally-machine Andreeva. But I think that Rybakina’s greater power will allow her to penetrate the court a bit more. These courts haven’t looked noticeably faster this year and Rybakina has the power to hit clean winners on any surface. Still, Andreeva is playing some brilliant, instinctual tennis and this one could go all the way.
