Indian Wells Masters: Maria Sakkari steamrolls Petra Kvitova in Indian Wells third round, Elena Rybakina beats Victoria Azarenka

Indian Wells Masters – Elena Rybakina beats Victoria Azarenka: Greece’s Maria Sakkari fired off five aces to make light work of Czech Petra Kvitova 6-3, 6-0 in the third round of Indian Wells on Monday. Follow IndiseSport.IN for more updates.

Indian Wells Masters: Maria Sakkari steamrolls Petra Kvitova in Indian Wells third round, Elena Rybakina beats Victoria Azarenka

The world number six won all of her first-serve points in the first set and dropped just one in the second, as Kvitova struggled with her serve, producing five double-faults across the 66-minute affair in California.

Indian Wells Masters: Maria Sakkari steamrolls Petra Kvitova in Indian Wells third round, Elena Rybakina beats Victoria Azarenka

Indian Wells Masters – Elena Rybakina beats Victoria Azarenka:  Two-times Wimbledon winner Kvitova ceded break point in the eighth game of the first set and never regained her composure, as Sakkari fended off two breaks to close out the frame and ran away with the match in the second set.

Massive from Maria 💪@mariasakkari soars past No.27 seed Kvitova 6-3, 6-0#IndianWells pic.twitter.com/qss1mi93Hk

— BNP Paribas Open (@BNPPARIBASOPEN) March 14, 2022

“It was a little bit tough for me to get used to her serve,” said Sakkari, who reached the semi-final at Roland-Garros and the U.S. Open last year.

Indian Wells Masters: Maria Sakkari steamrolls Petra Kvitova in Indian Wells third round, Elena Rybakina beats Victoria Azarenka

“Once I broke her, I just felt like that’s was the right way to return her serve and I was just very solid from the back of the court.

It was the second time that Sakkari has reached the round of 16 at tennis’ unofficial “fifth major,” after she reached the fourth round in 2018.

Later in the day’s action, two-time winner and 13th seed Victoria Azarenka fell to Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina 6-3, 6-4 after a malfunctioning serve saw her produce eight double faults.

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Elena Rybakina becomes the first woman from Kazakhstan to make the fourth round in #IndianWells, upsetting No. 13 seed Azarenka 6-3, 6-4 pic.twitter.com/Gt65y3dG8c

— BNP Paribas Open (@BNPPARIBASOPEN) March 15, 2022

An in-form Rybakina produced a pristine first set, launching four aces without dropping a single first-serve point to claim the early momentum.

Indian Wells Masters: Maria Sakkari steamrolls Petra Kvitova in Indian Wells third round, Elena Rybakina beats Victoria Azarenka

With her right shoulder heavily taped and a sleeve placed on her right arm, two-time Australian Open champion Azarenka grimaced, crouched down on the court and wept after a double fault in the fifth game of the second set. That prompted the chair umpire to approach Azarenka to ask if she needed medical attention.

Azarenka, who lost in the final last year to Spain’s Paula Badosa, apologized and continued but Rybakina converted the critical break point in the seventh game of the second set.

Elsewhere on the women’s side, Czech Marketa Vondrousova knocked out Estonian fourth seed Anett Kontaveit 3-7, 7-5, 7-6(5).

Indian Wells Masters: Maria Sakkari steamrolls Petra Kvitova in Indian Wells third round, Elena Rybakina beats Victoria Azarenka

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