WTA: Indian Wells draw: Sharapova highlight, Williams before comeback

With Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka, three former world number one finishers are undisputed in the main field. You can find out where they landed here!

By Florian Goosmann from Indian Wells

On Monday the ladies opened the unofficial fifth major in the Californian desert – with different results in the qualification from a German point of view. While Andrea Petkovic played Nicole Gibbs 1:6,6:2,6:0 after a bad start, Sabine Lisicki has already been eliminated after a 5:7,2:6 against Sofia Kenin.

Although Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka are spared the qualifying round, the draw on Monday afternoon turned all eyes to the big board in front of Court 1 where these three would be sorted. After her baby break, Williams is only in the field via Protected Ranking (and without any official ranking at all), Sharapova, after an up and down comeback year and number 41 in the world, is just as unrecognized as Azarenka, who is only present after a baby break and custody dispute thanks to a wildcard.

Sharapova caught the toughest draw. She will play in round one against Naomi Osaka and thus against one of the young season’s eight players. Under new coach Sascha Bajin, Osaka has already celebrated victories over Elena Vesnina, Ashleigh Barty and Kristina Mladenovic this year, reaching the eighth round in Melbourne and the quarter-finals in Dubai. Should Sharapova win, Agnieszka Radwanska will be in round two.

Williams starts her first official singles match in over a year against Zarina Diyas and would play her first official singles match against Kiki Bertens, and in round three there could be a Sister Act with sister Venus. Azarenka, without a tournament match since Wimbledon in 2017, drew Heather Watson to the opening match; if she wins, she would be in a duel with US opener Sloane Stephens.

Angelique Kerber and Julia Görges both landed in the lower half of the tableau and have a walk-through in round one. Kerber, seeded at ten, is waiting for the winner of the match Ekaterina Makarova against Kirsten Flipkens, who will meet at twelve seeded Goerges in round two against Natalia Vikhlyantseva or a qualifier.

Also playing, among others: Timea Bacsinszky – Qiang Wang, Tatjana Maria – Petra Martic, Belinda Bencic – Timea Babos, Carina Witthöft – Qualifantin, Mona Barthel – Veronica Cepede Royg.

You can find the entire women’s tableau here, for qualification click here!