By Tony Fairbairn
- Iga Swiatek [2] v Qinwen Zheng [8]
- Daniil Medvedev [5] v Arthur Fils [20]
- Madison Keys [5] v Belinda Bencic [WC]
- Carlos Alcaraz [2] v Francisco Cerundolo [25]
INDIAN WELLS, USA – Iga Swiatek targets revenge against Qinwen Zheng as they do battle in the Indian Wells quarter-finals.
 |
|---|
Iga Swiatek [2] v Qinwen Zheng [8] H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Iga Swiatek [2] v Qinwen Zheng [8] | H2H: Swiatek leads 6-1 |
| Indian Wells 2025 | Indian Wells, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $189,625 |
| First on Stadium One (18:00 GMT) | Sky/Now TV <- Subscription Required |
It continues to be a dominant title defence for Iga Swiatek so far as she raced past Karolina Muchova to book her spot in the last eight. However, it’s been at the next two phases of the tournament where she has struggled recently and the Pole knows she cannot get complacent now. A mixture of speed, power and accuracy puts Swiatek ahead of the pack heading into the quarter-finals but now the world number two must also have mental fortitude if she wants to defend her title at tennis paradise.
Revenge will be on the mind of Swiatek when she takes on the player that ended her gold medal dreams at the Olympics last year in the form of Qinwen Zheng. Not only did Zheng win Olympic gold but the Chinese number one also reached an Australian Open and WTA Finals final to boot in a stunning 2024 campaign. However, Zheng has struggled to live up to expectations so far this year so a deep run at Indian Wells could really benefit her season as she is yet to drop a set in the tournament so far.
Swiatek will aim to be dominant on serve as she will use the forehand to get Zheng out of position on the court. Meanwhile Zheng will use the backhand to create depth and power as she will need to be aggressive in this match. The Pole’s complacency cost her at the Olympics last year but Indian Wells is slightly less pressure and stress with a straight sets win expected as long as she can limit her unforced error count.
Prediction: Swiatek in straight sets.
Daniil Medvedev [5] v Arthur Fils [20] H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Daniil Medvedev [5] v Arthur Fils [20] | H2H: Medvedev leads 1-0 |
| Indian Wells 2025 | Indian Wells, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $202,000 |
| Second on Stadium One (Not before 20:00 GMT) | Sky/Now TV <- Subscription Required |
After an underwhelming start to the season, Daniil Medvedev will be relieved to get back to winning ways with a dominant win over Tommy Paul. The fifth seed has a lot of pressure this week as he is defending final points from last year and is hoping that this week can be the platform to build on as the season progresses. The rise of younger players on tour has seen Medvedev’s hard court prowess go under the radar but Medvedev will be hoping he can remind people of his qualities once again in California.
Next up for Medvedev is surprise quarter-finalist Arthur Fils with the Frenchman gaining some form this year. After winning a couple of ATP 500’s last year, Fils has a lot of pressure this year as he will look to produce more landmark results this year. However, it hasn’t been a great start to the season so Fils will be relieved that he has saved his best tennis for one of the biggest events of the season as he bids to reach a first Masters 1000 semi-final.
Medvedev will continue to be consistently aggressive on the forehand side in order to force errors from Fils’ game. Meanwhile the Frenchman will need to serve well as he will approach the net when the time is right to finish points off efficiently. This should be a good test for Medvedev but the fifth seed should have too much consistency for the aggressive Frenchman.
Prediction: Medvedev in three sets.
 |
|---|
Madison Keys [5] v Belinda Bencic [WC] H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Madison Keys [5] v Belinda Bencic [WC] | H2H: Tied at 2-2 |
| Indian Wells 2025 | Indian Wells, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $189,625 |
| Third on Stadium Two (21:30 GMT) | Sky/Now TV <- Subscription Required |
It doesn’t always have to be convincing as long as the same result is achieved and that’s exactly what Australian Open champion Madison Keys did in her win over Donna Vekic. A hard-fought win over the Olympic silver medallist means it’s 15 consecutive victories for the American as she continues her superior form. Now Keys looks for her third consecutive WTA title as she is the last American standing in the women’s singles draw at Indian Wells this year.
The reason for that is because Belinda Bencic produced a stunning win over Coco Gauff to reach the quarter-finals at Indian Wells. The Swiss’s comeback continues to get better as Bencic is now back into the world’s top 50 after another incredible win. After winning the WTA 500 event in Abu Dhabi, Bencic has been pretty hard to stop and now the 28 year-old will aim for a Grand Slam seeding soon given her current form and confidence.
Keys will use her lefty serve to force returning errors from Bencic as she continues her incredible hitting on the forehand side. Meanwhile Bencic will aim for controlled aggression as she looks to pin Keys behind the baseline in order to set up efficient and effective winners. This is a match between two confident players who are in form with Keys heading into this match as very slight favourite.
Prediction: Keys in three sets.
Carlos Alcaraz [2] v Francisco Cerundolo [25] H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Carlos Alcaraz [2] v Francisco Cerundolo [25] | H2H: Alcaraz leads 1-0 |
| Indian Wells 2025 | Indian Wells, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $202,000 |
| Fourth on Stadium One (Not before 02:00 GMT) | Sky/Now TV <- Subscription Required |
Carlos Alcaraz certainly looks like the man to beat at Indian Wells after the Spaniard only dropped two games against Grigor Dimitrov. The second seed is aiming for a third consecutive Indian Wells title and is playing aggressive yet consistent tennis in order to outsmart his opponents. Now with most of his main rivals out of the tournament, Alcaraz is aiming to capitalise on the opportunity presented to him in order to reach another Masters 1000 semi-final.
The next obstacle for Alcaraz is Argentinian Francisco Cerundolo after the 25th seed produced a stunning win over Alex De Minaur in the last 16. Cerundolo is known for big results on hard courts having been a former semi-finalist in Miami before and the Argentinian is hoping that his ruthless forehand can do damage once again. The question can the 26 year-old produce one of the biggest wins of his career at one of the biggest events of the season?
Alcaraz will look to be aggressive on serve as he will use the forehand to dictate rallies from the baseline. Meanwhile Cerundolo will need to take the ball early and hit heavy in order to take away the Spaniard’s power. The Argentinian should give Alcaraz a good test here but the second seed should prove too strong in order to continue his title defence bid.
Prediction: Alcaraz in straight sets.
How to Watch/Follow ATP Indian Wells 2025
| Live Stream | Sky/Now TV <- Subscription Required
TennisTV <- Subscription Required |
| Live Scores | Tennis Scores Powered By TNNSLIVE |
| Follow Britwatch - Sport in General, Brits in Particular! | |
|---|---|
| Soundcloud | |
| YouTube | |
| We may receive compensation for products purchased via affiliate links on this website | |