Kenin, Montgomery Ladies Singles Day 1
Indian Wells LIVE, Ladies Singles Day 1: The BNP Paribas Open is back in its traditional March slot in the calendar for the first time since 2019, and the first round kicks off with a list of intriguing matchups. The action kicks off with the likes of Sofia Kenin, Robin Montgomery and Dayana Yastremska battling it out on the court on Thursday. Follow Insidesport.in for all Indian Wells LIVE updates.
Indian Wells LIVE, Women’s Singles Day 1: Sofia Kenin and Robin Montgomery headline the main draw – Follow the live updates
[WC] Dayana Yastremska (UKR) against Caroline Garcia (FRA)
Dayana Yastremska has been rewarded with a wildcard from Indian Wells, and her first-round opponent will be Caroline Garcia, who made the semi-finals of her hometown tournament for the first time in Lyon. The Frenchwoman upset No.1 seed Camila Giorgi in the first round, and her run to a first semi-final from Lausanne last July showed new signs of resurgence for the former world No.4, who also scored an upset against Simona Halep in Doha. . For both, the only question mark might be fatigue from a grueling week on a different surface and continent. The winner will face a tantalizing clash with US Open champion and No. 11 seed Emma Raducanu in the second round.
Beatriz Haddad Maia (BRA) against. [WC] Sofia Kenin (USA)
Exactly a year ago, Kenin held a career-high No. 4. This week, she fell to No. 130, her first stint outside the Top 100 since March 2018. It’s a consequence of the hiatus. American’s six-month stint after Wimbledon last year due to injury and illness, as well as the loss of her early 2020 start. Points carried now that the Covid-19 rankings freeze has ended.
The Australian Open 2020 champion’s form is a question mark. For one, Kenin is on a five-game losing streak since the Sydney quarter-finals, his return tournament. On the other, she faced tough first-round draws, including eventual semi-finalist Madison Keys at the Australian Open and eventual champion Jelena Ostapenko in Dubai.
Kenin’s opener at Indian Wells, where she is yet to make it past the second round, isn’t quite as brutal, but it’s certainly far from easy. Hard-hitting left-hander Haddad Maia was ranked No. 358 a year ago but fell to 61st – three spots off his career high – after reaching the Monterrey semi-finals last week. The winner will face 19-year-old Clara Tauson, the rising No. 29 seed. Kenin has never beaten Maia, although both of those matches took place when she was a teenager.
Zheng Qinwen (CHN) against Vera Zvonareva
Zheng Qinwen’s rise over the past 19 months has been meteoric. Ranked No. 630 in August 2020, she racked up titles, achieved milestones and climbed through tournament tiers with apparent ease. The 19-year-old Chinese is now at a career-high No. 74 after an impressive performance in Monterrey, where she took eventual champion Leylah Fernandez to a third-set tiebreaker in the second round.
Zheng will debut in the WTA 1000 and in a rematch of a high-quality contest starting in January. Zheng’s 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 loss to Vera Zvonareva in Melbourne Summer Set 1, in which she showed not only her formidable power but also her improved rally tolerance, was a key milestone. to his first WTA semi-final.
Zvonareva, 37, was the 2009 champion at Indian Wells and the oldest of the six former main draw winners this year. However, the loss to Zheng in Melbourne was the start of a six-game losing streak for her, and she fell to No. 114 in the world this week. The winner will face former world No. 1 and 2019 Indian Wells runner-up Angelique Kerber, the No. 15 seed.
Head to head: Zheng leads 1-0.
[WC] Robin Montgomery (USA) vs. Kaia Kanepi (EST)
Her youth versus experience as the defending US Open girls’ champion takes on the oldest player in the Top 100. Robin Montgomery, 17, moved up to No. 2 in the junior rankings after that triumph and already has a ITF W25 title to his credit. She rose to 361st place in the WTA rankings. Montgomery has already received wildcards at the 2020 US Open and Miami last year and will seek his first WTA main draw win.
Montgomery, who is yet to beat a Top 100 opponent in six previous encounters, faces a formidable task against 36-year-old Kaia Kanepi. Like Cornet, the Estonian dealt a blow to the Australian Open veterans, upsetting Aryna Sabalenka to reach her first quarter-final there – and capping her last eight Grand Slam streak. Kanepi, ranked No. 63, who is playing a reduced schedule these days, will be in action for the first time since Australia. The winner will face No. 22 seed Belinda Bencic in the second round.
Clara Burel (FRA) against Anhelina Kalinina (UKR)
Last year, Clara Burel and Anhelina Kalinina reached their first WTA Finals in Lausanne and Budapest respectively, and have since cemented their breakthroughs in the Top 100. Despite their low-key rises, Burel and Kalinina were both top juniors whose establishing themselves as mainstays on the tour should come as no surprise.
Kalinina, 25, was a 2014 US Open women’s runner-up and Australian Open women’s doubles champion the same year; injuries have slowed his progress, but his tough base game has earned him wins over Angelique Kerber and Daria Kasatkina over the past year. Burel, 20, was world number one junior in 2018 after reaching the Australian Open and US Open finals, and has already scored defeats against established compatriots Caroline Garcia and Alizé Cornet. Burel leads 1-0 head-to-head, with a 6-0, 6-4 victory in the second round of the 2020 Saint-Malo ITF W60.
Alison Riske (USA) vs. [Q] Caty McNally (USA)
Caty McNally’s doubles ranking rose to 15th, but in singles she fell back to 172nd. While McNally has struggled in singles lately, a pair of three-set wins over Anna-Lena Friedsam and Sara Errani saw her in the main draw. Compatriot Alison Riske has generally enjoyed a comeback over the past seven months, winning the Linz title and reaching finals in Portoroz and Adelaide, but the 31-year-old is also on a three-game losing streak since the Open. ‘Australia. The two players have met once, with Riske winning the match in straight sets in the ITF W100 semi-finals.
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