INDIAN WELLS, California – Defending champion Iga Swiatek continued her dominant run at Indian Wells, crushing Dayana Yastremska 6-0, 6-2 to reach the fourth round, while Aryna Sabalenka said the disappointment of falling short in her bid for a third consecutive Australian Open title was beginning to fade following her second-round win.
Swiatek, seeded second, is aiming to become the first woman to win the tournament three times and the Polish player looked eager to do so in as little time on court as possible, reeling off 10 games in a row and needing just 65 minutes to dominate her Ukrainian opponent.
“At the end I got a bit tired, it’s always hard to finish a match like that but I’m happy that I kept my intensity up in the last game to close it,” she said according to Reuters.
“I had control from the beginning so I’m happy with the performance for sure.”
The five-times major champion has not won a title since her triumph at Roland Garros in 2024, her longest drought since winning her first major title in 2020.
She served a one-month suspension in October for a failed drug test and has seen Aryna Sabalenka take her world number one ranking but said the California desert is an ideal setting to get back to winning ways.
“It’s amazing, I love coming here,” she said.
“I already have my routine so it feels like home. It’s for sure the place to be and a great place to play tennis.”
Swiatek will face either 15th seed Karolina Muchova or Katerina Siniakova in the round of 16.
Tallon Griekspoor toppled 29th-seeded Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard on Sunday after stunning top seed Alexander Zverev in the previous round.
Griekspoor pounded 10 aces and broke Mpetshi Perricard’s mighty serve twice en route to the win under sunny skies in the California desert.
Popular American Tommy Paul notched his 50th win at a Masters 1000 tournament with a 6-3 7-5 victory over Britain’s Cameron Norrie.
Sabalenka smashed her racket and covered her face with a towel and sobbed after losing to American Madison Keys in the final at Melbourne Park in January.
The Belarusian suffered early exits at the Qatar Open and in Dubai since but was in full command of her formidable serve on Saturday, never facing a break point as she overpowered talented American McCartney Kessler in straight sets.
“I’d say that after the final in Australia I was really heartbroken,” the world No 1 told reporters.
“It was very difficult to recover after that one, and Middle East I was kind of like, in my thoughts, I was trying to understand.
“I was always thinking about that match. It was probably my mistake, but I think I had to go through it, I had to realise couple of things.
“I had to step back and start everything over again. Right now, I’m definitely feeling better and that final was in the past.
“Just good experience, great lesson, and hopefully it will never happen again,” she added with a smile.
The three-time Grand Slam champion said Indian Wells, where she finished runner-up in 2023, is the perfect place to reset.
“Indian Wells feels like a Grand Slam,” she said.
“And back-to-back Indian Wells-Miami Open. I love this tournament. For me feels pretty big. Psychologically I think it’s not that tough.”
Five-time champion Novak Djokovic tumbled out of the Indian Wells ATP Masters, falling in his first match to lucky loser Botic van de Zandschulp as two-time defending champ Carlos Alcaraz advanced.
“No excuses for a poor performance,” 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic said after 37 unforced errors in a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 defeat.
“It doesn’t feel great when you play this way on the court,” he added. “But congratulations to my opponent – just a bad day in the office, I guess, for me.”
Djokovic is just the latest in van de Zandschulp’s string of superstar victims.
He stunned Alcaraz at the US Open last year before beating Rafael Nadal in Davis Cup in what proved the Spanish great’s last match.
“I think I kept my cool during the whole match,” said van de Zandschulp. “I know if I go into the match and lose my cool, especially against the big players, it’s going to be a really tough day. That’s always one thing I’m trying to do well.”
