Indian Wells 2024 Day 6: Women's singles predictions ft. Maria Sakkari vs Caroline Garcia | BNP Paribas Open

The action at the 2024 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells continues with the third-round matches on Monday.

Earlier on Sunday, World No. 1 Iga Swiatek avenged her Australian Open loss to Linda Noskova with a 6-4, 6-0 win here. Yulia Putintseva eliminated 18th seed Madison Keys to reach the fourth round in the California desert for the first time.

Comeback queens Caroline Wozniacki and Angelique Kerber won their respective third-round matches. Now, the two will renew their rivalry as they'll face off in the fourth round.

One-half of the women's draw has already booked their places in the fourth round. Now, the rest of them will attempt to do the same on Monday. On that note, here's a look at the predictions for some of the important singles matches lined up on Day 6 at Indian Wells:

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#1 - Maria Sakkari vs Caroline Garcia

Sakkari overcame a one-set deficit to move past Diana Shnaider 5-7, 6-4, 6-0 in the second round. Garcia was pushed to the brink by Viktoriya Tomova as well but managed to prevail 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 in the end.

These two have a compelling rivalry and have split their previous six meetings evenly for the head-to-head to be deadlocked at 3-3. Garcia came out on top in their first three matches, after which Sakkari had the last laugh the next three times they met.

Indian Wells has proven to be a pretty good hunting ground for Sakkari. She was the runner-up here in 2022 and made it to the semifinals in 2023. Given her record at the venue and how she has turned around her rivalry against Garcia, the Greek will be favored to win.

Predicted winner: Maria Sakkari

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#2 - Elina Svitolina vs Emma Navarro

Elina Svitolina is the 16th seed at Indian Wells.

Svitolina overcame a second set stumble to defeat Katerina Siniakova 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 in the second round. Navarro dug deep to fight past Lesia Tsurenko 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 and reach the third round.

Navarro has been one of the most improved players on the tour in recent times. Svitolina's comeback, which began last year following the birth of her daughter, has gone remarkably well.

Navarro will now be gunning to reach the fourth round of a WTA 1000 tournament for the first time in her career. Svitolina was a semifinalist at Indian Wells back in 2019 and has reached the fourth round on three other occasions.

The veteran will be the favorite in this encounter, though Navarro won't make it easy for her to get through this clash. However, Svitolina's experience and her rock-solid defense should push her into the next round.

Predicted winner: Elina Svitolina

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#3 - Caroline Dolehide vs Yuan Yue

Dolehide cruised past Cristina Bucsa 6-2, 6-0 and then battled past former Indian Wells champion Victoria Azarenka 7-5, 2-6, 6-3 to reach the third round. Yuan captured her maiden WTA title in Austin last week and hasn't stopped winning just yet.

Yuan knocked out Varvara Gracheva in the first round and then stunned this year's Australian Open finalist Zheng Qinwen in the second round. She bested her more illustrious compatriot 6-4, 6-3, and has reached the third round of a WTA 1000 event for the first time.

Dolehide has more experience at making it past this stage as she finished as the runner-up in Guadalajara last year, another WTA 1000 tournament. However, with momentum being on Yuan's side, she'll have a considerable edge heading into this contest.

Predicted winner: Yuan Yue

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#4 - Sloane Stephens vs Daria Kasatkina

Sloane Stephens at the 2024 Indian Wells Open.

Stephens kicked off her campaign here with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Mayar Sherif. She then defeated 19th seed Sorana Cristea 6-0, 7-5 to reach the third round. This marks just the second occasion this season where the American has registered consecutive victories.

Kasatkina bested Oceane Dodin 6-3, 7-6 (5) to snap her three-match losing streak. She has a losing record against Stephens and trails 4-1 in the head-to-head. The American staged a comeback to win their most recent duel in the second round at this year's Australian Open.

Kasatkina's only victory over Stephens came en route to the final at Indian Wells back in 2018. The American's results this season haven't been that good compared to her opponent. However, she's always a dangerous adversary once she gets going and given her record against the Russian, she's got a great shot at winning this match.

Predicted winner: Sloane Stephens