Keys returns to court, Djokovic and Sabalenka headline: Indian Wells, Day 4 Preview

Novak Djokovic vs. Botic van de Zandschulp

>>> Watch live HERE, 5 p.m. ET

The post-draw buzz was all about Djokovic vs. Kyrgios. What was largely left out of that discussion was Kyrgios’ first-round opponent, Van de Zandschulp. The Dutchman is only ranked 85th at the moment, but he has slayed bigger giants than the Aussie before, most notably Carlos Alcaraz at last year’s US Open, and Rafael Nadal in his final match, in Davis Cup in November. Van de Zandschulp added Kyrgios to that list by winning a tight first-set tiebreaker and watching his opponent retire with a wrist injury in the second.

Now he’ll go after the most towering giant of all in Djokovic. The two have played once, three years ago, and Djokovic won in routine straight-set fashion. Style-wise, the two are comparable. Both like to drive the ball deep, they have no qualms about taking it down the line, and they’re equally dangerous from their backhand sides.

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Van de Zandschulp played an uncharacteristically defensive match against Kyrgios, but with nothing to lose versus Alcaraz in New York, he showed how much power, depth, and weight he can put on the ball. Will facing Djokovic bring out his nervous and tentative side, or his free-swinging, go-for-broke side? For his sake, and the fans’ sake, let’s hope it’s the latter. Winner: Djokovic

Aryna Sabalenka vs. McCartney Kessler

>>> Watch live HERE, 9 p.m. ET

Age-wise, these two are surprisingly close—Sabalenka is 26, Kessler 25. Career-wise, they might as well come from different generations. Sabalenka has been in the Top 10 for the past five years, and the Top 2 since 2023. Kessler, who went to the University of Florida before embarking on the tour, entered the Top 100 for the first time last summer, and the Top 50 for the first time last month.

While that leaves 47 spots between them, this match is more intriguing and potentially competitive than those numbers may indicate. That’s because in 2025, Kessler has more wins than Sabalenka (15 to 12), and has won a title and made a final. She also looked sharp in her first-round demolition of Anna Blinkova. Sabalenka, meanwhile, may still be recovering from her near miss against Madison Keys in the Australian Open final. Since then, she’s 1-2.

These two have never played, which leaves us to wonder how Kessler’s aggressive, flat-hitting will match up with Sabalenka’s spinnier but even more aggressive style. As Keys showed in Melbourne, and Clara Tauson showed in Dubai, the world No. 1 can be rattled by a big hitter. The questions may be: Can the slender Kessler hit big enough, and how much will the surface at Indian Wells help her? Winner: Sabalenka

Madison Keys vs. Anastasia Potapova

>>> Watch live HERE, 2 p.m. ET

Keys makes her triumphant and somewhat belated return after her maiden Grand Slam victory at the Australian Open five weeks ago. She’ll surely come back to a warm welcome from the home-country fans. Whether she’ll feel as good about this surface, and this opponent, is another question.

Read More: Where is Madison Keys keeping her Australian Open trophy?

You might think the hard-court-loving Keys would thrive in the desert, but she’s 10-11 here, and has made just one quarterfinal in over a decade of effort. While she hasn’t faced Potapova in four years, she’s 1-1 against her, and she lost their most recent meeting, on hard courts in Dubai in 2021. The 23-year-old, 34th-ranked Russian is also coming off a title run last month in Romania.

Potapova is a tough first match back after an extended lay-off, no matter how hot you were beforehand. But I do think Keys, with some struggles along the way, will handle it in the end. Winner: Keys