Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek backed: T365 Indian Wells Fantasy Predictions

Tennis365 05 Mar 2025 6:50 PM

L-R: Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek at Indian Wells.

Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek with the Indian Wells title.

The Middle East and South American swings are over – and all eyes now turn to one of the biggest tournaments of the year in Indian Wells.

Jannik Sinner may be suspended but the rest of the biggest names in tennis will be in action, with huge intrigue around both the men’s and women’s singles draws.

Ahead of action in the desert, our writers Oli Dickson Jefford, Shahida Jacobs, Ewan West, and Kevin Palmer predict their tournament champions.

Men’s singles

ODJ: Carlos Alcaraz doesn’t necessarily have an easy draw here but with several of his key rivals either out-of-form, injured, or inconsistent, he feels like the safest pick to triumph once again.

SJ: Think a couple of the big names will fall early as a lot of players outside the top 10 look ready to take the next step up. Have a feeling we will get a surprise finalist, but Carlos Alcaraz will be too good.

EW: Carlos Alcaraz.

KP: Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz is the man to beat in Indian Wells. Look out for Ben Shelton and Jack Draper to enjoy deep runs in the desert.

Women’s singles

ODJ: A rogue winner would not surprise me, but after a disappointing Middle East swing, I have a feeling 2023 runner-up and world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka will be back to her best on US soil.

SJ: The top three in the WTA Rankings ran out of steam in the Middle East. Karolina Muchova will finally win her maiden WTA 1000 title after finishing as a runner-up in her two previous finals.

EW: Iga Swiatek.

KP: Iga Swiatek will be the favourite given her amazing record in Indian Wells, but look out for Madison Keys to back up her Australian Open win with another big title success in the Californian desert.

Indian Wells News

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T365 Fantasy Game

This season, our writers are competing to see who can earn as many points as possible by predicting the champions at every ATP and WTA-level tournament.

Five points are available for a correct champion pick, with three for a runner-up, and one for a semi-finalist.

This becomes seven points for a champion, five for a runner-up, three for a semi-finalist, and one for a quarter-finalist at Grand Slams.

Last week’s action proved to be a mixed bag for the team, with Ewan earning eight points after ATX Open pick Jessica Pegula triumphed and Chile Open pick Sebastian Baez finished runner-up.

Kevin and Oli both earned six points – five points for Pegula, and one point for Cerundolo in Santiago – though chaos in Merida and Acapulco contributed to no other points won across the board.

Oli is still leading for now, though Ewan has closed the gap slightly.