Ekaterina Alexandrova defeated Elvina Kalieva 4–6, 6–2, 7–6 at Indian Wells on hard court in the first round, confirming her status as the pre-match favourite with odds of 1.15 to Kalieva's 6.35. After dropping the opening set, Alexandrova regrouped to level the match decisively in the second before edging a competitive third-set tiebreak. The Russian's comeback from a set down demonstrated composure under pressure in a Masters 1000 environment. Alexandrova advances to the second round, where consistency against higher-ranked opposition will be the measure of her Indian Wells campaign.