INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — High-ranked Iga Swiatek moved on on the BNP Paribas Open with a 6-3, 6-0 victory over power-hitting Danielle Collins on Friday.
Swiatek improved to 15-2 this season and earned her fifth straight win over the 30-year-old American, who beforehand introduced that she intends to retire after the season.
The 2 met in January within the second spherical of the Australian Open, with Swiatek profitable 6-3, 3-6, 6-4.
This one was a lot simpler.
Swiatek, a four-time main champion, received 71.1% of her first-serve factors, in contrast with Collins’ 50%. Collins did herself no favors with unforced errors and 7 double faults.
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Swiatek will face Linda Noskova. The 19-year-old Noskova beat Swiatek within the third spherical at Melbourne Park.
In different girls’s motion, Angelique Kerber battled again to beat Jelena Ostapenko 5-7, 6-3, 6-3 in a matchup of former Grand Slam champions. It was much like Kerber’s three-set win in Cincinnati in 2021 earlier than she turned a mom and returned to motion this yr.
Kerber, who reached the Indian Wells ultimate in 2019, is a three-time Grand Slam titlist.
On the lads’s aspect, Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner cruised to a 6-3, 6-0 win over Thanasi Kokkinakis to increase his profitable streak to 16 matches. The third-ranked Sinner received 74.5% of his service factors to run his all-time document in opposition to Kokkinakis to 4-0.
Regardless of profitable 26 of his previous 27 matches, Sinner insisted he isn’t invincible.
“I am not unbeatable, I am simply well-prepared,” he advised reporters. “I labored actually onerous to be on this place. Clearly it is a place you dream of as a result of profitable a Grand Slam, that is everybody’s dream, however you journey right here, the situations are completely different after which it’s a must to discover a approach someway.”
Andrey Rublev defeated Andy Murray 7-6 (3), 6-1, whereas Alejandro Tabilo, Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alex de Minaur additionally received in straight units.
Rublev piled up errors within the opening set and was compelled to save lots of 4 set factors whereas his opponent loved the assist of the Stadium 2 crowd.
However Rublev discovered his vary with the forehand to roll via the second set and safe the win. He’ll meet No. 32 seed Jiri Lehecka within the third spherical.
“He had a whole lot of probabilities within the first set and I used to be fortunate to win. Had I misplaced it, it could have been actually, actually robust,” Rublev mentioned. “After the primary set, I felt extra confidence and I knew that it could be even harder for Andy to maintain up his consistency.”
No. 2 seed Carlos Alcaraz overcame a sluggish begin to dispatch Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi 6-7 (5), 6-0, 6-1 to get his hopes of a title protection within the California desert off to a profitable begin.
The Spaniard, who didn’t drop a set en path to the Indian Wells title a yr in the past, dumped a backhand into the web handy the primary set to a fired-up Arnaldi beneath the lights on middle courtroom.
Alcaraz quickly discovered his rhythm, nevertheless, enjoying the highly effective and artistic tennis that has made him a two-time Grand Slam champion and fan favourite.
“I used to be nervous within the first set,” Alcaraz mentioned. “That makes me at some factors transfer completely different or with much less power. However within the second and the third units it was completely completely different.”
“My good recreation comes out when my power is so excessive,” he added.
American Ben Shelton got here from behind to attain a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over the Czech Republic’s Jakub Mensik in different males’s second-round motion.
The Related Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
