Indian Wells - Day Ten, and women’s Semi Final Day.
Also the last of the mens quarter finals.
BNP Paribas Open - a WTA Premier Mandatory category tournament, on Hard Plexipave, in Indian Wells, California, USA, 4-17 March 2019.
Defending champion:
Naomi Osaka who defeated Dasha Kasatkina (20) 6-3 6-2
WTA Semi Finals
- Wildcard Bianca Andreescu v Elina Svitolina (6)
The find of 2019 has undoubtedly been Canadian 18 year old Bianca Andreescu, and her battle with established Ukraine star Elina Svitolina was always going to be a crowd pleaser.
Svitolina was the one off to a flyer, creating break point chances in each of the first two Andreescu service games, and converting successfully to lead 3-0.
All of a sudden, the trend reversed, with attacking ground strokes from the Canadian, who was willing to be early on her decision making, forcing Svitolina into reactive mode, often committing errors.
The two breaks were squared away, and 3-3 reached, with Andreescu serving for the lead. This achieved, Svitolina came under pressure once more, and after eliminating two break points, had the chance to level things with a game point. She failed to convert, and dropped a third successive game.
Andreescu served at 5-3 for the set and did so to love. 6-3, and 26 of the last 35 points in the opening set.
Naturally, Svitolina was unhappy, and her prescription to fix this dose of the doldrums came with a renovation of her tennis game.
Game one of set two was over before the repairs to Svitolina had finished, and the Ukraine serve was broken for a fourth straight time.
The new look approach, on display in game two, proved efficient, as Andreescu was broken to love. 1-1.
The Ukraine forehand progressively recorded more damage, and 4-1 resulted, including another break of the Andreescu serve, and a Svitolina service hold in game five, staving off two break chances.
Serving at 2-5, Andreescu dropped another serve, Svitolina converting the second of two set points, forcing Andreescu into error from a quality volley. 3-6 6-2 and a deciding set required.
Andreescu broke Svitolina in the opening game of the third set, a forehand down the line sealing it. The sixth seed rebounded in the sixth game, making the most of a series of Andreescu errors, and breaking on the third chance.
Andreescu replied with a break in the seventh game, a return winner confirming the 4-3 advantage. Saving three break points, Andreescu extended her lead to 5-3, and Svitolina saved a match point
At 5-4, Andreescu saved two break points with excellent forehands, wasted second and third match points, saved another break point, before Svitolina finally put herself out of her own misery by netting a forehand. Bianca Andreescu won 6-3 2-6 6-4.
The teenager was now into her second ever WTA final, by far the bigger of the two, and assured a rankings jump from 60 to 33.
At the start of the year, Bianca was sitting at #152, and has since made the final in Auckland, knocking off Wozniacki and V Williams in the process.
Additionally, 2 Fed Cup singles wins, a 125k series title in Newport Beach, and semi finalist in Acapulco. Now the Indian Wells performance has her currently #6 in the live 2019 WTA Race.
- Angie Kerber (8) defeated Belinda Bencic (23) 6-4 6-2,
snapping the 12 match unbeaten streak from the Swiss number one. Kerber gave up a 2-4 lead in set one before rattling off the final four
games. Set two also saw the three time major winner present Bencic a start, by dropping serve in the opening game.
Unperturbed, the next three games ended up in German hands. Altruistic Angie still displayed some decency by allowing Belinda a chance in game five, and it was taken. 2-3 and back on serve.
Assassin Angie replaced the pleasant version and said farewell to Belinda from Indian Wells, winning the last three games.
Angie Kerber won 6-4 6-2.
Final will be
Angie Kerber (8) v wildcard Bianca Andreescu
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