Sabalenka said players should stop playing immediately and ask for a video review after Daniil Medvedev’s altercation with Jack Draper in the quarter-finals.
Englishman Draper was penalized for a controversial blocking call before Russian Medvedev was booed by some fans.
With the score at 5-5 in the first set, Draper briefly spread his arms during the confrontation to express his belief that Medvedev’s forehand went too far.
The match continued seven times before Medvedev hit a backhand.
Medvedev, a two-time Indian Wells finalist, then asked referee O’Reilly Tourte to conduct a video review to see if Draper was guilty of obstruction – making a move or making a noise to disrupt an opponent.
After watching several replays on her tablet, Tourt told Draper she ruled against him because “you did something different than usual in the rally” and awarded Medvedev a point.
