Indian Wells 2025 Day 5 Recap

Sunday at Indian Wells saw the top half of the men’s draw complete their third-round matches. Stefanos Tsitsipas had the performance of the day by dispatching Matteo Berrettini in straight sets to maintain his excellent form since Dubai.

Daniil Medvedev is the highest-ranked player left in the top half, and he only had 30 minutes on the court, moving through when Alex Michelsen retired due to illness.

There were also wins for Rune and Paul, but Musetti and Tiafoe were the two highest-profile losers. The latter falls to the Japanese qualifier Watanuki.

Tallon Griekspoor also backed up his win over Sascha Zverev by ousting Mpetshi Perricard in straight sets. I thought Perricard would win that one as usually, there’s at least one big server who does well in Indian Wells but the Dutchman proved too solid.

Day Five 2025 BNP Paribas Open Round of 32 Results

Winner
Loser
Scoreline

Tallon Griekspoor
Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard
7-6(3) 6-3

Yosuke Watanuki (Q)
Frances Tiafoe (16)
6-4 7-6(16)

Holger Rune (12)
Ugo Humbert (18)
5-7 6-4 7-5

Stefanos Tsitsipas (8)
Matteo Berrettini (28)
6-3 6-3

Marcos Giron
Alexei Popyrin (26)
5-7 6-3 6-3

Arthur Fils (20)
Lorenzo Musetti (15)
3-6 7-6(4) 6-3

Tommy Paul (10)
Cameron Norrie
6-3 7-5

Daniil Medvedev (5)
Alex Michelsen (31)
2-0 RET

Tsitsipas Maintains Form

Stefanos Tsitsipas continued his recent stellar run of form, easing past Matteo Berrettini 6-3, 6-3 on Sunday to extend his win streak to seven matches.

The eighth seed, who also defeated the Italian in Dubai last week, now leads their H2H 5-1 and clearly enjoys the matchup.

Tsitsipas won 92% of his first-serve points (22/24) and controlled the rallies with a mix of spin and variation on the slow Indian Wells courts.

You’d think the conditions would suit his game, but statistically, Indian Wells is the Greek’s worst Masters 1000 in terms of % of matches won (just a solitary quarter-final), but with his new blacked-out racket (Babolat), he’s hitting the backhand more freely and has got his confidence up.

The draw has also opened for him, so a good run here means the Top 5 is within sight, which is a big turnaround considering he dropped out of the top 10 last year.

I have to focus on my serve, that’s the priority. I’m thinking of how I am going to hold serve, how I’m going to press the opponent. There’s an added bonus of holding easier, you have more time to focus on the return. Tstisipas on his tactics

Watanuki Tops Tiafoe

Japanese qualifier Yosuke Watanuki produced high-quality shotmaking en route to upsetting 16th seed Frances Tiafoe 6-4, 7-6(6). 

Watnuki landed 47 winners, including 16 aces, to condemn Tiafoe to 5-5 for the season so far. Interestingly, Tiafoe’s former coach, Wayne Ferreira, with whom he had his best results, is now working with the Japanese talent, guiding him to five wins in Indian Wells, including an upset over Alexander Bublik.

After back-to-back Top 20 victories, Watanuki now faces Tallon Griekspoor for a place in the quarterfinals.

I’m speechless. I can’t find my words but I’m so happy to be here. I got injured last year, so I’m happy just to stay on the court. The most [important] thing about me, sometimes I’m a little bit nervous, sometimes I’m feeling down with the mentality. We tried to figure out that part. I try to enjoy more, even when I miss. A winner is much better, but even the miss I enjoy. That was the beauty here for me today. Watanuki on his win.

Other Matches of Note

Holger Rune secured a gritty 5-7, 6-4, 7-5 victory over 18th seed Ugo Humbert to record one of his better wins in recent times.

Arthur Fils also produced an impressive comeback against Lorenzo Musetti, fighting off a match point at 5-6 in the second set to win 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-3. This was his first Masters 1000 win over a Top 20 player. 

Daniil Medvedev advanced to the fourth round after Alex Michelsen was forced to retire just 10 minutes into their match due to illness. He will next face 10th seed Tommy Paul, who defeated 2021 champion Cameron Norrie 6-3, 7-5 to claim his 50th ATP Masters 1000 win.

Day 5 Highlights

Indian Wells 2025 Day 6 Round of 32 Matches

Can Tsitsipas continue his form into the later rounds here?