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Former World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki recently expressed excitement at facing her good friend and three-time Major winner Angelique Kerber in the fourth round of the 2024 BNP Paribas Open.
Wozniacki, who won her lone Grand Slam title at the 2018 Australian Open, came out of retirement last year. The 33-year-old has made the most of her second wind on the WTA Tour this year.
The Dane won her first two matches against Donna Vekic and Zhu Li, both of whom are ranked higher than her, in straight sets, She then took out local favorite Katie Volynets in three sets to reach the Round of 16 at this week's BNP Paribas Open. Wozniacki will next face Angelique Kerber for a place in the last eight of the WTA 1000 tournament.
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Speaking to the media following her third-round victory, Caroline Wozniacki was asked about her thoughts ahead of her 16th-career match against her friend Angelique Kerber at Indian Wells. In response, she claimed that both players knew each other's games, thereby likely making for a sharp-edged contest between the two.
"Yeah, I mean, it's going to be a great match. We've played each other so much. We know each other extremely well. There's going to be no secrets out there. We both know each other's game inside out," Caroline Wozniacki said during her post-match press conference on Sunday. "We know what to do, we know what to expect. It's really going to be about who is going to be better on the day. It can go either way."
"I think both of us are going out there thinking it's a 50/50 match" - Caroline Wozniacki on facing Angelique Kerber
During the press conference, Caroline Wozniacki was reminded by a journalist that she met Angelique Kerber in the semifinals of the BNP Paribas Open 11 years ago. The then-World No. 10 came from a set down to beat the German 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 to reach the final, where she lost to second-seeded Maria Sharapova.
Asked whether the close nature of some of their past matches had any bearing on their Indian Wells fourth-round encounter, the former World No. 1 replied in the negative. She said that there is no clear favourite ahead of their match on Wednesday (March 13).
"Probably not. Again, we know each other's games really well, we practice together all the time. So it's not like one of us will be going out there feeling like there is a clear favorite," Wozniacki said. "You know, I think both of us are going out there thinking it's a 50/50 match, and whoever grabs the opportunities best is going to win that match. I think that's the mindset of both of us I think going out there."
Caroline Wozniacki and Angelique Kerber have met 15 times on the WTA Tour, with the latter winning eight of those matches. While Kerber took their only Grand Slam meeting at the 2016 US Open, Wozniacki won their most recent encounter at the 2018 Eastbourne International in three sets.
