Top seeds crash out
It was a tough day for seeded players at the BNP Paribas Open on Tuesday, with Novak Djokovic and Naomi Osaka, the world’s top-ranked players, ushered out in the desert.
Djokovic and Philipp Kohlschreiber resumed their third-round match that was suspended because of rain a night earlier. The unseeded German knocked off the five-time tournament champion 6-4, 6-4.
Osaka lost to Belinda Bencic 6-3, 6-1 in just over an hour in the fourth round of the first title defense of her career.
“She sort of came out there really aggressive,” Osaka said. “She sort of knew what she wanted to do more than me.”
Since Osaka won the title at Indian Wells a year ago, she won the U.S and Australian Opens. Her triumph in Australia made her No. 1 for the first time, but her time at the top has been rocky. Osaka fired her coach and lost in the first round in Dubai before taking on a new coach, Jermaine Jenkins, who came on court during the match.
“It’s always a bit tricky when- ever you change someone in the team, but I feel like for a first tournament we did really well,” Osaka said. “We communicate well, so I think that’s a really big plus. I don’t think it’s going to be difficult.”
On Tuesday, the 23rd-ranked Bencic served and returned better.
The bottom half of the men’s draw still includes No. 2 seed Rafael Nadal and fourth-seeded Roger Federer, both of whom breezed to victory.
Nadal eased by 25th-seeded Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 6-1, while Federer defeated Swiss countryman Stan Wawrinka 6-3, 6-4.
“Overall it’s not been easy playing Stan,” Federer said. “He feels the same way, so that’s very awkward sometimes.” /