BNP Paribas Open—Indian Wells, California
Fritz, Draper Advance at BNP Paribas Open; Keys Wins First Match Since Australia
Saturday’s action-packed day at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California saw former winner Taylor Fritz breeze into the third round, defeating Matteo Gigante 6-3, 7-5.
Needing a mere one hour and 29 minutes to advance, Fritz used his hard-court skills to produce 17 winners, five aces and three breaks of serve.
The No. 3 seed, who is at a career-high ranking of No. 4 in the world, will next face No. 30 seed Alejandro Tabilo.
Tabilo won his first match of the year over Dusan Lajovic 6-3, 7-5.
Elsewhere, No. 12 seed Jack Draper was cruised against talented Brazilian Joao Fonseca. Prevailing by a scoreline of 6-4, 6-0, Draper used his lefty serve and experience to offset his younger opponent.
Fonseca has been touted as a future top 5 player and potential Major winner. The 18-year-old is currently ranked No. 78 in the world.
Draper will next face Jenson Brooksby in the third round. Brooksby upset inform Canadian and No. 17 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 6-2.
Still to come on Saturday, No. 2 seed Carlos Alcaraz, No. 6 seed Novak Djokovic and No. 7 seed Andrey Rublev will be in action.
Sunday’s schedule in the Californian desert will include third matches highlighted by No. 5 seed Daniil Medvedev, No. 8 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and No. 16 seed Frances Tiafoe.
Keys Captures First Win Since Australian Open
Reigning Australian Open winner Madison Keys returned to competition on Saturday in Indian Wells, California, dismissing Anastasia Potapova 6-3, 6-0.
In a contest that latest one and three minutes, Keys showed off her hard-court skills to great effect. Winning 73 percent of her first serve points, Keys broke her Russian opponent on six occasions.
The American will next face No. 28 seed Elise Mertens or Kimberly Birrell from Australia.
Other winners on the day saw Polina Kudermetova, Lucia Bronzetti and No. 29 seed Maria Sakkari all reach the third round. Kudermetova defeated No. 20 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-5, 6-2, and Bronzetti dismissed Magdalena Frech 6-3, 7-5.
Top seed Aryna Sabalenka, No. 3 seed Coco Gauff and No. 17 seed Amanda Anisimova will all be in action later today.
Sunday’s schedule in Palm Springs will feature No. 2 seed and defending champion Iga Swiatek.
Check back for daily updates from TennisConnected.com throughout the year for your up-to-date schedules, reviews, draws and results.
Live Streaming for this week’s ATP Tour and WTA tournaments can be found right here.
