Stan Wawrinka overcame a spirited effort from 21-year-old Yoshihito Nishioka 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(4) on Wednesday to return to the BNP Paribas Open quarter-finals for the third time. The Swiss star had to dig against Nishioka, who was trying to gain his first win against a Top 10 player and become the first lucky loser in tournament history, since 1976, to reach the quarter-finals. The Swiss right-hander will try to reach his first Indian Wells semi-final when he meets Gael Monfils or Dominic Thiem in the last eight. Wawrinka also reached the quarter-finals in 2008 (l. to Djokovic) and 2011 (l. to Federer). He struggled from the outset on Wednesday evening, though, as Nishioka chased down most everything and frustrated the...
Channeling the same game plan that reaped the ultimate reward in the Australian Open final in January, Roger Federer has put on a stunning display of aggression to defeat fifth seed Rafael Nadal in the fourth round of the BNP Paribas Open. The four-time champion prevailed 6-2, 6-3 to set a quarter-final showdown with Australian Nick Kyrgios, after the Australian’s earlier upset of defending champion Novak Djokovic. Federer’s victory marked the first time he had defeated Nadal three times in a row in 36 FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings, following his five-set triumph in Melbourne in January and a three-set win in the 2015 Basel final. The last time Nadal tasted victory was in the 2014 Australian Open semi-finals. This was the first...
A phenomenal serving display from Nick Kyrgios on Wednesday saw him end Novak Djokovic’s 19-match winning streak at the BNP Paribas Open with a 6-4, 7-6(3) victory in the fourth round at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Five-time former champion Djokovic had won the title in the desert the past three years, with his last defeat coming against Juan Martin del Potro in the 2013 semi-finals. But Djokovic's campaign ended at the hands of an inspired Kyrgios, whose serve did not let up throughout the one-hour, 52-minute contest. “The run was amazing. I am very proud of it, obviously. It had to end at some stage. Unfortunately, it was today. Nick, again, as he did in Acapulco earlier, few weeks...
Fourth seed Kei Nishikori reached the BNP Paribas Open quarter-finals for the second year in a row as he defeated Donald Young 6-2, 6-4 on Wednesday in Indian Wells. The Japanese star rallied from a 1-4 deficit in the second set, winning the last five games to claim victory in 77 minutes. It was his fifth win in five FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings with the No. 60-ranked Young, who had reached two semi-finals last month in Memphis and Delray Beach. “He started playing much better in the second set, beginning of the second set. I think he was stepping in a little more. And, for me, I think I backed up a little bit,” Nishikori said. “From [1-4], I think...
Five-time champion Novak Djokovic brought his best tennis in a 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 victory over Juan Martin del Potro on Tuesday night in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open. It’s a match-up that typically brings out the best in both players, and they did not disappoint on a packed Stadium 1, with Djokovic upping his game when it mattered to surge to the finish line in two hours and 18 minutes. Victory sees Djokovic tie Pete Sampras for 10th in the Open Era with 762 victories overall and sees him join Roger Federer (331) and Rafael Nadal (318) as the third player to earn 300 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 victories. [ALSO LIKE] The ‘group of death’ section...
