BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells

American Vania King defeated Taylor Townsend in a match that can only be described as a very poor performance from Townsend.  Although she had moments of brilliance and even broke a couple of times, she never seemed comfortable in the match.  You will not win if you cannot consolidate your break and if your game is saturated with unforced errors.  There were too many errors from Townsend and despite her talent, she has to get fitter if she wants to showcase that talent.  She was hindered by her excess weight and the increased energy expenditure required to move around the court drained her physically and mentally.  King won 6-2, 6-3.

Carina Witthoeft (GER) defeated Irina Falconi. I am still trying to figure out why Falconi lost this match after playing so well in the first set.  She seemed to run out of energy in the latter stages and even when she took the lead in the final set, she could not hold on to it.  This is not the Falconi I am used to seeing, perhaps she was not feeling well.  Anyway, good effort from Witthoeft to shrug off the bagel and take the victory 0-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Lucie Hradecka (CZE) defeated Alison Riske, which was also a surprise.  The lack of confidence was evident in Riske’s game the entire match.  Even when she broke back to force the tiebreak in the first set, she did not seem convinced that she could win the set.  After she lost the first set, things unraveled completely for Riske and the fighter that I am used to seeing never showed up.  She played tentatively and looked unsure of her game for much of the match.  Hradecka has a big serve and hits her groundstrokes flat and hard; however,  she is not known for doing well on the singles court; yet, today she surprised a few doubters and won 7-6(4), 6-2.