By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, March 11, 2017
Angelique Kerber ended a desert drought defeating good friend Andrea Petkovic, 6-2, 6-1.
Photo credit: @BNPParibasOpen
Four planes flew in formation over stadium one as Angelique Kerber served for the opening set today.
On the court below, Kerber landed strikes with the precision of a pilot touching down on a runway to reverse recent Indian Wells misery.
Muguruza: Play Mad, Play Bad
In an all-German clash, the second seed swept good friend Andrea Petkovic, 6-2, 6-1, in her BNP Paribas Open opener.
It was Kerber’s first hard-court conquest of Petkovic since the 2009 US Open and snapped the left-hander’s four-year winless drought in the desert.
In recent years, Indian Wells had been little more than a layover en route to Miami for Kerber, who had endured three consecutive Indian Wells’ opening-round exits.
Today, Kerber was sharp from the outset dragging Petkovic into the corners to create space and driving her flat forehand down the line to end her desert drought.
“Of course it was not so easy to play against her, and we know each other very long,” Kerber said. “We are both up-and-downs in our careers.
“I was trying today just focusing more on my side of the tennis court. Just being focused on my game, because I think the last three years I lose here in the first round, so that was also something in my mind that I would like to change this year and just go through it. So that's why I'm happy to be in the next round.”
The US Open champion benefited from a boost before she even struck a shot.
World No. 1 Serena Williams withdrew from both Indian Wells and Miami citing a knee injury and ensuring Kerber will regain the top spot she previously held for 20 weeks when the new WTA rankings are released.
While she insists No. 1 is not her top priority, Kerber needed to get back on track.
The two-time Grand Slam champion carried a subpar 7-5 record, including two opening exits, into the tournament, and was eager to regain her winning ways.
“My goal for here and for this trip was not in my mind to becoming the No. 1,” Kerber told the media afterward. “It's more like coming here, winning matches, having the feeling again on court.
“This was more on my mind, because, yeah, it was losing the last three years here in the first round, so that's why I would like to change it again and have the feeling winning here, matches. And, yeah, that's what was in my mind.”
Petkovic couldn’t consistently hang with her sometime Fed Cup teammate in longer baseline exchanges. A backhand crosscourt missed the mark wide as Kerber converted her second break in four Petkovic service games for a 5-2 lead.
Cruising through the second set, Kerber closed an impressive 58-minute victory when Petkovic’s backhand ricocheted off the tape and scattered wide.
Kerber will play 62nd-ranked Frenchwoman Pauline Parmentier next. Parmentier defeated 27th-seeded Yulia Putintseva, 6-2, 6-3. It will be Kerber's first meeting with Parmentier since the 2010 Bogota quarterfinals, which Kerber won permitting just five games.
No. 13-seeded Caroline Wozniacki, who knocked Kerber out of the 2013 semifinals, crushed qualifier Magda Linette, 6-3, 6-0.
Wozniacki did not drop serve in a 76-minute triumph to set up a third-round match with Katerina Siniakova, who stopped 23rd-seeded Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro, 6-3, 7-5.
The 2011 tournament champion Wozniacki says her speed and ability to shift spins give her an edge on the gritty Indian Wells hard court.
"I think the fact I can mix the game up and the pace and do different things on the court, I think that's helped me on many games and many matches," Wozniacki said. "I definitely think that that's a big advantage that I have.
"And the fact that I have great wheels and I can run a lot of balls down, that also helps me when you're not feeling the best and all you have is being the wall back there and just kind of wait it out and then go for your shots when it's wide open."