Indian Wells: Paula Badosa through; defeat for Victoria Azarenka
Indian Wells defending champion Paula Badosa defeated Sara Sorribes Tormo, 7-6(4), 6-1 in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open. The No.5 seed will face 18th seed Leylah Fernandez in the next round. Meanwhile, Marketa Vondrousova caused an upset over fourth seed Anett Kontaveit. She won in 2 hours and 50 minutes. No.17 seed Elena Rybakina beat two-time champion Victoria Azarenka.
Notable numbers for Badosa
As per WTA, Badosa is looking to become the first woman to defend the Indian Wells title in over 30 years. The last woman to achieve the feat was Martina Navratilova (1990 and 1991). This was the sixth career meeting between Badosa and No.32 seed Sorribes Tormo. Badosa now holds a slim 3-2 lead in the head-to-head meetings.
Badosa to face Fernandez next
Badosa will taken on Fernandez next, who beat Shelby Rogers 6-1, 3-6, 6-3. She has a 1-0 lead over Fernandez, winning in Auckland 2020. "Leylah, I mean, she's coming from winning a tournament. She's with lots of confidence. She's an amazing player," Badosa said. Badosa said she thinks Fernandez is in the present and not just the future as she expects a tough match.
Vondrousova stuns Kontaveit
Vondrousova clinched a close 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(5) win over Kontaveit to make progression. She was trailing in the third set by a 4-2 margin before making a comeback. She now owns a 3-1 win-loss record against Estonia's Kontaveit. She is also a win away to notch a career-best performance at Indian Wells, having reached the quarters in 2019.
Rybakina beats Azarenka
Rybakina tasted success, outlasting Belarus' Azarenka 6-3, 6-4 in an hour and 34 minutes. "It was a tough match, but really happy that I won today," Rybakina said as per WTA. "Today my serve was really, really good. It helped me a lot." Azarenka, who reached last season's final here, saw Rybakina serve five aces, besides winning 87% of points on the first serve.
Kudermetova beats Bouzkova in the third round
Vondrousova will face No.21 seed Veronika Kudermetova in the round of 16, Kudermetova advanced after Marie Bouzkova retired from their third-round match due to a right ankle injury. Kudermetova had won the first set over 97th-ranked Bouzkova 6-4, besides leading 2-0 in the second.
