Indian Wells is the host of many significant changes for both the ATP and WTA Tours this year.
After 25 years of having the same surface, Indian Wells have switched to Laykold that is also used by the US Open.
This switch has split opinion, with Aryna Sabalenka loving Indian Wells’ new courts for the 2025 tournament.
Although he was not completely against the change, Carlos Alcaraz was unsure of Indian Wells making this decision.
Many people were expecting it to be particularly beneficial for Daniil Medvedev, who has previously complained about how slow the courts at Indian Wells are.
However, Medvedev disagreed with this and suggested that this change actually was the opposite of what many fans were expecting.
This is not the only change that has been seen at Indian Wells this year, with the WTA also showcasing something new.
The WTA criticized for their new graphics at Indian Wells
Last week, the WTA announced their rebrand that included having a new logo and slogan.
This rebrand was widely criticized, with former top 10 player Kristina Mladenovic calling out the WTA for their update.
There have also been some new changes made for the Indian Wells tournament, that tennis journalist Jose Morgado pointed out for the match between Petra Kvitova and Varvara Gracheva.
When asking what people thought about these changes, there was a strong response from fans who once again criticized the WTA for this move.
One fan even suggested that this change actually made them not want to watch the tennis anymore.
In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), they said, “Unwatchable.”
Another social media user was also very against it, “It’s absolutely horrific. Makes my eyes bleed. Why do they change things that are perfect? The logo and now the scoreboard.”
Some others were not so strongly against the change, suggesting that they actually liked the statistic graphic, but were not keen on the scoreboard.
One said, “The graphic with the set/match statistics isn’t bad. The scoreboard is an absolute atrocity.”
Followed by another adding, “The stats graph looks great. The score graph is not very good.”
Someone else suggested that the new graphic made it seem like a retro video game, “It’s an amazing scoreboard for a video game launched in 2000.”
While an additional social media user just wanted the old graphics back, “Hideous. Change it back.”
What does Coco Gauff want the WTA to do with their rebrand?
While she has not commented on the graphics, Aryna Sabalenka has requested the WTA to make changes with their rebrand as well as world number three Coco Gauff.
When speaking in her pre-tournament press conference at Indian Wells, Gauff asked the WTA to up their game on social media.
“Obviously I’m someone who is on social media a lot,” said Gauff. “A lot more TikToks and following the trends that a lot of the other sports are doing, which I know that WTA has a plan in place, and, you know, they ask for feedback and that was the main thing I noticed.
“I don’t personally watch TV or anything like that. That’s outside of my expertise, but I think TikTok I’m pretty good in. A lot more of TikToks of just players’ interaction.
“Hopefully some crossover content. I feel like the crossover content does well with ATP, so I would love to see some more crossover content.”
It remains to be seen whether the WTA will listen to Gauff, who could face a Grand Slam champion in her first match at Indian Wells this year.