WTA Indian Wells: Venus Williams Still Seeks First Win of the Season, Wang Xinyu to Play Early Tomorrow Morning

On March 5 local time, the ATP/WTA 1000 Indian Wells tournament entered its second day of main draw play, with first-round singles contests continuing and select women's doubles first-round matches also being held. The most anticipated women's match was undoubtedly the appearance of Venus Williams. Playing the second match on the stadium court, she fell to qualifier Diane Parry 3-6, 6-7(4), 1-6. After a grueling battle lasting 2 hours and 21 minutes, she once again failed to secure her first victory of the new season. Parry will next face home favorite Madison Keys in the second round.

Venus Williams

The 45-year-old Venus Williams has increased her tournament schedule this year. Previously, she exited in the first round at Auckland, Hobart, the Australian Open, and Austin. Her last victory at a tour-level event dates back to last July in Washington. By competing at Indian Wells, she achieved another legendary milestone—this marks her 110th main draw appearance at a WTA 1000 event, tying her with Francesca Schiavone for sixth place since the tier's inception in 1990. Counting from her debut at Indian Wells in 1996, Venus's presence at this tournament spans three full decades, and she will turn 46 this June.

Another wildcard entrant, former top player Donna Vekic, secured a victory. She saved two set points in the second set to eventually defeat Czech rising star Linda Valentova 7-6(4), 7-6(4), claiming her first tour-level win of the season. Vekic had suffered first-round exits this year in Auckland, at the Australian Open, in Dubai, and in Merida, and her world ranking has now fallen outside the top 100 (No.103). The 2024 Olympic women's singles silver medalist is eager to regain form, but she faces a stern test in the second round against world No.5 Jessica Pegula.

In women's doubles, Guo Hanyu and Kristina Mladenovic defeated Linda Noskova and Diana Schneider 6-4, 4-6, [10-2] to advance to the round of 16. Top seeds Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini opened their campaign with a 6-2, 7-6(6) victory over Ulrikke Eikeri and Clara Tauson.

Other Women's Singles First-Round Results

Qatar [Q] TBD 6-4, 6-4 TBD

[Q] Taylor Townsend 6-2, 6-1 Marie Bouzkova

Ashlyn Krueger 6-1, 6-4 Magda Linette

Laura Siegemund 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 Katerina Siniakova

[Q] Kayla Day 6-3, 6-1 Francesca Jones

Anna Bondar 7-6(5), 7-5 Leolia Jeanjean

Jule Niemeier 6-4, 6-0 Simona Waltert

[Q] Storm Hunter 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 Sara Bejlek

Donna Vekic 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 [W] Jennifer Brady

Katerina Siniakova 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 Sofia Kenin

[W] Peyton Stearns 6-2, 6-4 Varvara Gracheva

[W] Katie Volynets 6-1 Ret. Tereza Martincova

As the second round of singles is set to begin tomorrow, top stars will take the court over the next two competition days. Wang Xinyu's match time has been confirmed; she will play the second match on Court 7 against Ajla Tomljanovic (scheduled for approximately 4:30 AM Beijing time tomorrow). Since reaching the fourth round at the Australian Open, Wang's form in February has been average, with a first-round exit in Austin. She will look to reverse this trend at Indian Wells.

Zheng Qinwen is scheduled to play the day after tomorrow, facing world No.57 Croatian player Donna Vekic. Zhang Shuai, along with the doubles pair Xu Yifan and Yang Zhaoxuan, will compete in the women's doubles first round tomorrow. Alexander Zverev, Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Jannik Sinner, and Amanda Anisimova are among the stars set to appear on the stadium court.

Complete Schedule for March 7

(Text/Editor: Wang Fei, Photo/VCG)