Tennis News

A riveting encounter between two entertaining competitors in Andy Murray and Philipp Kohlschreiber is scheduled to take place in the third round of the Indian Wells 2015 Masters event on Monday. This is just the third time these two athletes cross paths on the professional circuit, with the head-to-head series tied at 1-1.

Watch the match live here: Murray vs Kohlschreiber Live Stream

The world No. 4 began his week in the desert with a relatively straightforward 6-1, 6-3 over Canadian No. 2 Vasek Pospisil. He struck 14 winners and lived off Pospisil’s error’s to close out the match in 80 minutes. While he felt he needed to make some adjustments following the indoor Davis Cup rubber in Glasgow last week, he appeared to have a grip on the match and a feel for the court from the start.

“It was a good start,” said Murray after the match. “He didn’t serve particularly well. But even still, returning second serves, it was not easy… I thought I played quite a smart match, played solid. I didn’t go for too much, but I also felt like when we were in the rallies, I was dictating them, keeping him pinned in his backhand corner, and pushing him further and further away from the baseline.”

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Murray will come up against Philipp Kohlschreiber, who reached the third round of Indian Wells by beating Tim Smyczek in straight sets 6-3, 6-1. The German struck five aces, won 82% of his first service points and faced no break points en route to the 51-minute thrashing.

This is just the third time these two competitors will cross paths on the tour, and will not be an easy contest for the British No. 1. He has been dealt no favours against his German adversary, who holds a win over Murray back in 2010 on this same surface. While Murray is capable of overcoming the tough battle, he will need to play a clean match-up and remain focused for what could be a long, gruelling battle.

Prediction: Andy Murray in Straight Sets

The first blockbuster match-up of the 2015 edition of the Indian Wells event is set to take place on Monday evening in the American desert, as world No. 2 Maria Sharapova and two-time Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka will cross paths for the 13th time on the professional tour. Azarenka leads the head-to-head series 7-6, although Sharapova has won their two most recent clashes.

Follow the match Live Here: Azarenka vs Sharapova Live Stream

Seeded second, Maria Sharapova served up a 6-1, 7-5 scoreline against Yanina Wickmayer in her first match at the Premier level event.

“We have had some really good matches in the past, even though we haven’t played against each other in a while,” Sharapova said. “She’s made a few comebacks, and she’s already been playing really good tennis. I always look forward to our matches, and I’m sure it’ll be a good one this time.”

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The 32nd seed at this year’s Indian Wells event, Victoria Azarenka, reached the third round of the tournament after beating former Wimbledon semifinalist Kirsten Flipkens in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4. While the scoreline suggests it was a simple match, Azarenka had to fight back from a break down in the second set to close out the match.

“It’s great for me the more matches I can get like that,” Azarenka said of the looming match-up. “To play against one of the best players, it’s perfect. I’m looking forward to that. I definitely need to play my best tennis because she’s been playing great. So I’m really looking forward to that one.”

Sharapova and Azarenka have crossed paths on 13 previous occasions, with the Belarusian leading the series 7-6. However, her Russian adversary won their two most recent meetings on the tour, and will look for the trifecta on Monday at Indian Wells.While Azarenka has improved tremendously over the past few months, she is yet to find the form that will see her beat top ranked opposition consistently.

Prediction: Maria Sharapova in Three Sets

Following a breezy opening match at Indian Wells, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic is though to the third round of the Mastes 1000 event, where he will encounter Spain’s Albert Ramos-Vinolas for the first time on the professional tour.

You will be able to follow the match live here: Djokovic vs Ramos-Vinolas Live Stream

The top seed at this year’s edition of the American desert Masters event began his campaign on Saturday evening against former Aussie Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis, whom he defeated in straight sets to advance to the following stage. He beat Baghdatis 6-1, 6-3 in a lopsided affair to move his unblemished record in the head-t-series to 8-0. Djokovic struck 6 aces, won 82% of his first service points and faced no break points en route to his 60 minute win.

“Great performance against a quality opponent, against somebody that was a former Top 10 player and that knows how to play on a big stage,” Djokovic said. “No complaints. Everything was working well from the beginning to the end.”

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Through two rounds at Indian Wells this week, world No. 68 Albert Ramos defeated Viktor Troicki in his opening round match in straight sets, and then followed up with a win over France’s Julien Benneteau. The latter he won in decisive fashion, 6-2, 6-3 to secure his spot in the third round against Djokovic. He struck 13 aces in that match, and won 81% of his first service points, all while breaking serve on five occasions.

This marks the first time that Djokovic and Ramos-Vinolas will cross paths on the professional tour. The Serbian star will undoubtedly have a noticeable advantage against his Spanish counterpart, and will look to implement it immediately en route to another straightforward victory. Given that Djokovic is the defending champion and has had great success at this event, he should have little trouble making it to next week.

Prediction: Novak Djokovic in Straight Sets

In her first match in over a month, and under the guidance of a new coach, Canadian darling Eugenie Bouchard cruised into the third round of the Indian Wells tournament. Following her impressive showing, she will come up against local favourite Coco Vandeweghe, whom she has never faced previously on the professional tour.

You will be able to follow the match Live Here: Bouchard vs Vandeweghe Live Streaming

Apart from a slight opening set hiccup that could have swayed the result, Eugenie Bouchard looked great in her first match back on tour, and defeated Czech Republic’s Lucie Hradecka in straight sets to advance to the third round of the tournament. She routed her 6-2, 6-2 in just 57 minutes.

Given that much has changed in the Bouchard camp over the past few months, the rising star is simply pleased to have notched a win at Indian Wells and to have gotten over the first hump.

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“I haven’t had all that much time to practice, so I just wanted to get the feel of a match. I don’t overthink it in a match, I go back to what I do, and what I’m used to.,” Bouchard said. “I will not be changing things, but definitely adding some things to my game. Overall I’m happy today that I did the basics well, and that’s one big step forward.”

World No. 36 Coco Vandeweghe reached the third round at Indian Wells following a straight sets win against Sesil Karatantcheva. She won the match 6-2, 6-3 and did so after serving at 70% of her first serve points. The match lasted a total of 62 minutes.

Bouchard and Vandeweghe have never crossed paths previously on the WTA tour. Given that the Canadian looked great in her first match back, one would lean towards her continuing that trend into the second week of the tournament. However, she could have some trouble against the big serving Vandeweghe.

Prediction: Eugenie Bouchard in Three Sets

After downing a local favourite in his first match at the 2015 edition of the Indian Wells Masters event, Kei Nishikori is through to the third round, where he will encounter Spain’s Fernando Verdasco for the third time on the professional tour. The Japanese No. 1 is yet to notch his first win against Verdasco, who compiled a 2-0 lead in the head to head series between 2011-12.

Follow the match Live Here: Nishikori vs Verdasco Live Streaming

Fifth seed Kei Nishikori reached the third round of the tournament with a 6-4, 6-4 victory against American Ryan Harrison. He withstood five aces and won 63% of his first service points to close out the match in one hour and 27 minutes.

“The first match is always tough,” said Nishikori. “But there were so many ups and downs in the first set. Almost every game we couldn’t hold serve, but we also returned well. That’s why there were a lot of breaks.

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“The second set I was playing an almost perfect game. I was hitting good serves. No break points. I think I didn’t face any break points. Luckily I got the first break, so it was easier mentally to hit a lot of good shots. But I’m really happy to win today and I’m looking forward to playing the next round.”

Awaiting Nishikori in the third round is Spain’s Fernando Verdasco, who reached that stage of the tournament with a 6-2, 7-6(3) win over qualifier James Duckworth. While the second set was a competitive affair, Verdasco faced no break points on serve and finished the match in one hour and 18 minutes.

This marks the third time that these two competitors will cross paths on the ATP World Tour, with Verdasco leading the series 2-0. While he is yet to lose a match to the Japanese No. 1, they have not played a match together in over three years, which renders the h2h useless. Given the changes over that time, it would not be surprising if Nishikori finally notches that elusive win over Verdasco.

Prediction: Kei NIshikori in Three Sets