Indian Wells 2024: Caroline Wozniacki vs Angelique Kerber preview, head-to-head & prediction | BNP Paribas Open
Match Details
Fixture: (WC) Caroline Wozniacki vs (PR) Angelique Kerber
Date: March 12, 2024
Tournament: BNP Paribas Open
Round: Fourth Round (Round of 16)
Venue: Indian Wells Tennis Garden, California, US
Category: WTA 1000
Surface: Outdoor hardcourt
Prize Money: $8,995,555
Live Telecast: USA - Tennis Channel/TC Plus | UK - Sky Sports | Canada - TSN/TVA
Caroline Wozniacki vs Angelique Kerber preview
Caroline Wozniacki and Angelique Kerber will square off in a fourth-round battle between Major champions at the 2024 BNP Paribas Open on Tuesday.
Wozniacki scored a 7-6 (6), 6-1 win over Zhu Lin in the first round here. She then bested 25th seed Donna Vekic 7-6 (5), 6-3 to reach the third round, where she faced Katie Volynets.
Wozniacki quickly forged a 5-1 lead for herself in the first set. She stepped up to serve for the set and even had three set points but Volynets broke her serve to keep herself in contention. It didn't amount to much as the Dane broke right back to take the set.
Wozniacki went down a break early on in the second set but managed to get back on serve. However, Volynets secured another break of serve and held on to the lead this time to clinch the set. Her resistance crumbled in the decider as the Dane dished out a bagel to complete a 6-2, 4-6, 6-0 win.
Kerber, meanwhile, commenced her time at Indian Wells with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Petra Martic. She then staged a comeback to oust 10th seed Jelena Ostapenko in the second round. The German was up against 17th seed Veronika Kudermetova in the third round.
Kerber trailed by a break twice in the opening set but managed to get back on serve down the line. She then bagged the last two games of the set to claim the opener.
Kerber went down a break to trail 2-1 in the second set but turned things around to take a 4-2 lead. Kudermetova fought back to level the score but it was all in vain as her opponent nabbed the last two games of the match for a 6-4, 7-5 win.
Caroline Wozniacki vs Angelique Kerber head-to-head
Kerber leads Wozniacki 8-7 in the head-to-head. The Dane won their previous encounter at the 2018 Eastbourne International in three sets.
Caroline Wozniacki vs Angelique Kerber odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Caroline Wozniacki vs Angelique Kerber prediction
The two have rolled back the clock with their runs at Indian Wells. For Kerber, this has been the best result of her comeback so far. Wozniacki, on the other hand, made it to the fourth round of the US Open last year as well.
The two are familiar rivals as they have faced off 15 times in the past. While Kerber leads the overall head-to-head, Wozniacki has a slim 6-5 lead on hardcourts only.
They played an iconic match at Indian Wells back in 2013 as Wozniacki sneaked past Kerber 7-5 in the third set. The German's serve is a bit of a liability for now and could put her on the backfoot. She's got the edge over the Dane when it comes to groundstrokes at this point.
They're almost evenly matched when it comes to court coverage. Wozniacki is more match fit having started her comeback before Kerber, which could give her a slight advantage. This could be another close battle between them, though Wozniacki will be favored to make it through this clash.
Pick: Caroline Wozniacki to win in three sets.