The 2022 Indian Wells Open will feature a spectacular first-round match between Grand Slam champions Naomi Osaka and Sloane Stephens.
Naomi Osaka began the year by reaching the semifinals of the Melbourne Summer Set. Due to an abdominal issue, she withdrew from her semi-final match. Afterwards, her title defence in the Australian Open came to an end in the third round against Amanda Anisimova. Also, due to her defeat in the Australian Open 2022, her rankings faced a dramatic downfall. In view of that, her current ranking is 78. However, Naomi Osaka is poised to return to action at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. The Japanese will compete in the WTA event for the first time since 2019.
When it comes to Sloane Stephens, she started her campaign of 2022 by bowing her head to defeat in the Australian Open 2022. She was up against world no. 13, teenager Emma Raducanu. Her admirers, however, saw a glimpse of optimism when she participated in Guadalajara and won for the first time in almost four years. She went on to win the championship by defeating Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic in the final. In the process, she demonstrated her mettle.
The two have faced off twice, with Stephens holding a 2-0 head-to-head advantage. They last met at the WTA Finals in Singapore in 2018, with Stephens winning in three sets (7-5, 4-6, 6-1).
Despite her recent form and the downfall of her performances, Naomi Osaka will enter the match as the overwhelming favourite. She is anticipated to make a spectacular comeback. Stephens, on the other hand, is not the kind to let her opponent walk away easily with the victory. She has a lot of momentum going into this match. Given her winning record against Osaka, she'll also be confident. Furthermore, regardless of who wins, the match will be exciting since fans will be able to watch both players' contrasting styles of gameplay.
However, if we are talking about the prediction, we believe Osaka will snatch the match away given her expertise and experience. Also, her ranking has been jeopardized and she wouldn't want it to stay like that.
Our Prediction: Naomi Osaka to win in three sets.
However, all of the action will be broadcasted live for spectators in the following countries, on the following networks and websites:
Live streaming will also be available on the Official 2022 BNP Paribas Open mobile app for fans who are onsite at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, apart from the ATP tour, WTA tour and Tennis Channel Plus apps.
