INDIAN WELLS — The first round in Indian Wells normally doesn't feature much star power as all 32 seeds receive byes. But this year, three of the WTA's biggest names—Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka—are all unseeded. This makes for some must-see matches early in the tournament:
1
Naomi Osaka vs. Maria Sharapova
Sharapova won Indian Wells in 2006 and 2013, but because of her suspension, she hasn't been able to play here since 2015. Her opponent, on the other hand, didn't even make her main-draw debut at the tournament until last year. In a matchup that promises big hitting from both sides of the net, Sharapova and Osaka will be playing each other for the first time. Osaka let her ranking drop 28 spots last year, but she's off to a solid start in 2018, winning 8 of her 12 matches.
"She's one of the few players that has all the serves, in terms of slice, kick, flat," Lindsay Davenport said of Osaka at the draw ceremony. "I really think that is the best first round."
Osaka has also been working on her tweener, which may or may not be helpful.
