Sabalenka vs Osaka, Indian Wells fourth round is locked in after world number one Aryna Sabalenka and former champion Naomi Osaka both won on Sunday, while fourth-ranked Coco Gauff retired with a left arm injury.
Sabalenka beat Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian 6-4, 6-1 to reach the last 16. Osaka, seeded 16th, rallied past Camila Osorio 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 to set up the showdown.
Sabalenka said she was pleased with her focus and serving after hitting 23 winners against Cristian. She added she hopes to get “revenge” against Osaka, referencing their only previous meeting — a 2018 match in Indian Wells that Osaka won on her way to the title.
Osaka, playing her first tournament since withdrawing before her Australian Open third-round match due to an abdominal injury, said she improved her mindset after a shaky second set against Osorio. She said she tried to be more positive and lifted her attitude in the deciding set.
Coco Gauff Retires, Alexandra Eala Advances
Gauff’s tournament ended early when she retired while trailing the Philippines’ Alexandra Eala 6-2, 2-0. Gauff described the pain as feeling like “a firework going off” inside her arm, adding it worsened as the match went on.
She took a medical timeout in the first set and had her left forearm wrapped, but after 54 minutes, she went to the net and told Eala she was stopping.
Eala said she didn’t want to win that way, but called it a big moment to play on Stadium One and wished Gauff a speedy recovery.
Sixth-seeded Amanda Anisimova needed just 52 minutes to beat 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu 6-1, 6-1. Seventh-seeded Jasmine Paolini advanced with a 7-5, 5-7, 6-1 win over Ajla Tomljanovic.
