Muguruza and Sakkari upset; Andreescu wins
GARBI E Muguruza could not keep the momentum going at the Indian Wells Open after winning a WTA title last week and the former world number one was followed out the door by Maria Sakkari.
Muguruza, who claimed the Chicago Fall Tennis Classic, was surprisingly upstaged 6-3 1-6 6-3 by Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic in an upset on Saturday.
Tomljanovic had been 0-6 against top-10 players this year heading into the match but had just enough to edge the fifth seed and two-time Grand Slam champion with some timely breaks of serve.
The world number 4 Tomljanovic is into the third round at Indian Wells for the first time in seven appearances and next faces 26th seed Tamara idansek.
“I was really looking forward to playing Garbine, because I did lose [to her] the last couple of times,” Tomljanovic said in her on-court interview.
“I did try to focus on that one time I beat her [in 2014], and tried to channel that energy, so I was really happy that I got through today.”
Sixth seed Sakkari - a semifinalist
(GETTY IMAGES/AFP) at this year’s French and US Opens - also fell victim to a shock result, going out 56-3 6-2 to Viktorija Golubic in their first meeting.
The pair kept trading service breaks in the opening set, five in all, before Golubic tightened up her game for the final two sets.
After breaking the Swiss three times in the first set, Sakkari converted just one of four break points the rest of the match. Golubic had lost in the first round in her previous two trips to Indian Wells but is now on to the third, where she will face Anna alinskaya.
Former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu saw a potential straight-sets win slip away before recovering to defeat Alison Riske -6 -2 56-2.
Andreescu - the defending champion after the 2020 WTA Premier 1000 event was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic - led 4-1 in the second set but watched her advantage evaporate as Riske forced a decider, which the Canadian ended up taking comfortably as she faced only one break point in the last.
Top seed arolina Pliskova eased past Magdalena Frech
-5 6-2, while third-seeded Barbora rejcikova was pushed to a third set before prevailing 6-4 3-6 6-1 against arina iyas.
Angelique erber - the 10th seed and three-time major winner - went the distance to beat aterina Siniakova 6-1 6- 4- -5, while 15th seed Coco Gauff downed Caroline Garcia 6-3 6- 2- 6-1 in her debut match at the tournament.
Ons abeur, the 12th seed, prevailed 6-2 6- 56-3 over Anastasija Sevastova and 18th seed Anett ontaveit - Andreescu’s next opponent moved on when Martina Trevisan retired down 6-3 5-2.