Swiatek, Andreeva reach quarters at rainy Indian Wells

Defending champion Iga Swiatek powered into the Indian Wells quarter-finals with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Karolina Muchova on Tuesday, beating the rain that played havoc with many of the day's matches.

The world number two from Poland needed just 57 minutes to put away Muchova, who took her to three sets in the 2023 French Open final.

Swiatek, the 2022 and 2024 winner, didn't face a break point as she continued her bid to become the first woman to win three titles in the California desert.

She said the showers that delayed her match by 55 minutes were an extra spur to finish it quickly, especially after the rain came again near the end of the contest.

"On last two games, it was a bit slippery already, but I really wanted to finish," she said. "So I kind of played more risky, but the shots were still in."

"I'm happy that I closed it, for sure, because I knew this big cloud is coming," she said.

And it did, as off-and-on showers caused multiple delays, the longest lasting more than three hours.

Ukraine's Elina Svitolina, ranked 23rd, shrugged off the long wait at the start of the third set to upset world number four Jessica Pegula 5-7, 6-1, 6-2.

"Definitely was not easy with all the conditions and the rain, stop and start," Svitolina said. "Warmed up maybe like 10 times today.

"But everyone is in the same conditions. You just have to adjust and go again."

Svitolina booked a meeting with 17-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva, who beat former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan 6-1, 6-2.

Andreeva has now won two straight matches against world number seven Rybakina, including a semi-final triumph in Dubai last month where she went on to become the youngest ever WTA 1000 champion.

Russia's Mirra Andreeva in action during the Dubai Championships on February 21, 2025.Reuters

The delays meant world number six Daniil Medvedev's night match against American Tommy Paul didn't get on court until after 10pm -- about the same time that China's Zheng Qinwen faced Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk in the final women's match of the day.

Medvedev took on American Tommy Paul in a rematch of their semi-final last year, won by the Russian to reach his second straight Indian Wells final. He lost to Spain's Carlos Alcaraz in both.

Mentally very good

The winner of that match will play France's Arthur Fils, who waited out the long delay in the first set to post a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 win over American Marcos Giron.

A brief morning shower was barely a blip for Denmark's Holger Rune in a 6-4, 6-4 victory over in-form Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Tsitsipas was coming off his first title in nearly a year in Dubai last month, but Rune, ranked 13th, snapped the world number nine's seven-match ATP win streak with an aggressive game that included 22 winners.

Up 4-3 in the second set, Rune saved a break point with a dazzling between-the-legs shot, racing back to the baseline after a Tsitsipas lob and batting the tweener that dropped perfectly to deny the Greek.

"Mentally, I was very, very good," Rune said. "I think that's what made the difference -- how composed I was able to stay."

Rune next faces 43rd-ranked Tallon Griekspoor, who upset top seed Alexander Zverev in the second round.

Griekspoor also made a belated start and waited out a second-set delay in his 7-6 (7/4) 6-1 victory over Japanese qualifier Yosuke Watanuki.