Indian Wells 2025: 3 biggest takeaways from women's singles draw ft. Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina

After some amazing WTA 1000 events in the Middle East, the tour moves to Indian Wells in the US with two more. These two are popularly called the Sunshine Double events as they take place in very sunny areas of the US.

The first of those is the Indian Wells Masters, a very popular event famously called the 5th Grand Slam due to its amazing facilities and high standards. The draw happened recently, which tells us who will play who, and there are a few storylines that we need to mention ahead of the event; storylines that could impact this event dramatically.

So let's go over those three storylines and see what might happen with Naomi Osaka, Elena Rybakina, and home favorite Coco Gauff who is in desperate need of a good result after a dreadful stay in the Middle East where she essentially lost early in both events.

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1. Naomi Osaka won’t make it to the second week in Indian Wells

The MGM Rewards Slam - Source: Getty

This event is a very long one, as it’s basically a two-week event, though we think that Naomi Osaka won’t make it to the second week. There is a very good reason for that, and it mostly has to do with her draw.

Osaka’s level has looked pretty decent this year with some really solid wins, but it’s very hard to imagine her beating some of those players back to back. She could do it, of course, because she’s that type of talent, but beating these players will be tough.

First up it’s Camila Osorio who won’t make it easy. If she wins that one, she has to play Clara Tauson, who has been amazing this year and will fancy the slower conditions.

Then it would be Mirra Andreeva next, who has also been ridiculously good this year, winning the biggest trophy of her career in Dubai. If she wins all of that, she might face Elena Rybakina, and we simply don’t think she’ll be able to get it done because Rybakina is a former champion here and plays really well.

Those are some amazing players, and beating all of them back to back seems a bit unlikely for Osaka, who essentially hasn’t played a proper competitive match since the Australian Open.

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2. Coco Gauff won’t win the event

Coco Gauff has historically played some of her best tennis on home soil in the US. That’s not true of the Indian Wells Masters, though, as she’s generally struggled here. It’s an interesting phenomenon because she generally plays well on clay, and this court resembles that.

The problem has mostly come from her inability to hit through players. She’s doing better more recently but still hasn’t quite gotten the hang of it.

The draw has pitted her against some really clean hitters, which will complicate things. She might face Emma Raducanu in the second round, which could be tough. She will also likely face either Amanda Anisimova or Diana Shnaider, which is going to be a massive tough matchup for her.

Those are all players that can hit through Gauff on their best day, and she’s not yet on the level where she can trade blows with some of the best consistently. She’s also been in pretty poor form lately, struggling with control and hitting too many unforced errors.

None of that instills much confidence ahead of this event.

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3. The drama will hamper Rybakina

Rybakina’s tennis is what should be the talking point about the Kazakhstani player on most days, but in recent months it’s been mostly drama, especially the drama with her former coach Stefano Vukov. We have a piece on that topic recapping everything, so we won’t talk much about that, but she’s unlikely to overcome all of that to win the event.

She’s a former champion of the event, having won in 2023, but she’s very unlikely to replicate that achievement. It’s not so much that she can’t do it because she has the level for it. The tennis has looked pretty good this year at times, but it seems unlikely with everything that has been happening in the background.

The draw hasn’t been the kindest either, with Bouzkova likely being her opponent in round two. She’s annoying to play against, and if she wins that, she faces Katie Boulter, who is a very tough out. Then it could be Andreev or Osaka or even Tauson, which won’t be easy, so overall it just seems very unlikely. The draw is very tough, and she hasn’t looked too convincing in recent months.

So there you have it, some of the burning storylines leading up to this event, though not the only ones. There are many, as this is a pretty significant event, the biggest one past the Australian Open with the best players attending, so lots to be excited about.