WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2019 16 Osaka powers past Collins Osaka sets up fourth round clash at Indian Wells with Dubai champion Belinda Bencic putting it away. Naomi Osaka keeps “It gives me confidence that • I can turn around matches, that her title defence alive I can play also three sets, also with a straight sets win in the close moments that I’m over Danielle Collins there, that I can trust myself,” said Kerber, adding that it was Venus Williams, always difficult to face an oppo- • nent for the first time. Angelique Kerber She will be doing the same in and Anya Sabalenka the round of 16 against Aryna also advance Sabalenka, the ninth seed from Belarus who defeated Lesia Tsurenko 6-2, 7-5. AFP | Indian Wells, United States Williams eventually orld No 1 and defend- ‘comfortable’ in victory ing champion Naomi Seven-time grand slam winner WOsaka powered past Venus Williams also found it American Danielle Collins 6-4, Angelique Kerber of Germany plays a backhand against Natalia Vikhlyantseva Naomi Osaka of Japan plays Danielle Collins of the United States tricky facing fellow American 6-2 on Monday to book a fourth- of Russia Christina McHale for the first round meeting with resurgent time, but she pulled back early Swiss Belinda Bencic at Indian ished out the next game for a 3-1 Wimbledon champion Petra breaks in each set to win 6-2, 7-5. Wells. lead and led 5-1 before Collins Kvitova in the final of the Du- Kerber battles back “I never played her, so you’re Japan’s Osaka, whose second saved a match point to hold and bai Duty Free Tennis Cham - In other third-round action, out there learning what they do straight grand slam title at the make Osaka serve out the match. pionships last month to cap - three-time grand slam cham- well, what shots they select,” Australian Open propelled her Collins, trying to build on a ture her first WTA title in four pion Angelique Kerber came Williams said, admitting that it to the top of the rankings, traded breakout run to the Australian KNOW WHAT years. from a set down to beat Russian wasn’t until the second set that breaks with Collins early in the Open semi-finals, failed in her She won the WTA title in To- qualifier Natalia Vikhlyantseva she felt ‘OK, I understand.’ first set. bid to avenge her 6-1, 6-0 loss to ronto in 2015 before a series of 3-6, 6-1, 6-3. “I felt comfortable with try- But she got the decisive break Osaka in their only prior meet- Bencic stunned two- back and wrist injuries saw her After dropping her serve in ing to control the point from in the ninth game, giving herself ing in Beijing last year. slide down the rankings. the first game of the second set, there,” said Williams, who a break point with a backhand And Osaka, whose first career time Wimbledon Osaka was also in Dubai, but Kerber won seven games in a fired 20 winners and converted winner before pouncing on a title came at this Premier Man- champion Petra Kvi- lost her first match in the second row to force a third set and take seven of her nine break point short ball and belting a forehand datory event last year, advanced tova in the final of the round to Kristina Mladenovic, a 2-0 lead in the decider. chances. winner to give herself a chance to a meeting with Bencic, the Dubai Tennis Champi- resulting in an emotional press She was unable to convert four She will fight for a quarter-fi- to serve for the set. 23rd seed who defeated Rus- onships last month to conference where she admit- match points against Vikhly- nal berth against Mona Barthel, An increasingly confident sian Ekaterina Alexandrova capture her first WTA ted to struggling with her new antseva’s serve at 5-1 and was a 7-5, 1-6, 6-4 winner over Julia Osaka broke Collins to love for 6-4, 6-2. title in four years position as the leading player of broken to love when serving for Goerges in an all-German con- a 2-1 lead in the second. She fin- Bencic, 21, stunned two-time women’s tennis. the match at 5-2 before finally test. Ailing Zverev toppled at Indian Wells Bale tough enough to deal Philipp Kohlschreiber before with Real Madrid boo Rain slows rain swept across the California • desert. AFP | London play in Wales’s opening Euro Novak Djokovic as The duo were sent to the lock- 2020 qualifier against Slovakia play suspended er room and with no break in yan Giggs has backed star on March 24. the weather in sight organizers Rman Gareth Bale to shine “He’s an experienced play- AFP | Indian Wells, United suspended play for the night, for Wales despite his problems er. He’s a quality player and a States with the match to resume on at Real Madrid, where he has quality person,” Giggs said af- Tuesday. been targeted by disgruntled ter naming a 31-man squad for iling world number The winner will face in-form fans. a Wrexham friendly with Trin- three Alexander Zverev Frenchman Gael Monfils, who Bale has won four Champi- idad and Tobago on March Acrashed out of the ATP rolled past Albert Ramos Vino- ons League trophies in Spain 20 and the Slovakia game in Indian Wells Masters, where las 6-0, 6-3. but has been consistently rel- Cardiff. Novak Djokovic’s third round Monfils won his eighth career egated to the bench in recent “I expect Gareth to turn up and do what he match was suspended by rain Jan-Lennard Struff, right, shakes hands with Alexander Zverev after their match title at Rotterdam in February, weeks as Real’s season has un- with one game completed. at Indian Wells followed up that performance ravelled. always does, give Jan-Lennard Struff, ranked with a run to the semi-finals in The 29-year-old’s limited everyone a lift. 55th in the world, notched his Struff was delighted to get a first lead in the third set. Dubai. integration into Spanish life When he plays for first victory over Zverev in five win over Zverev. But Raonic, runner-up at In- In other early matches, has also drawn fire and Mon- Wales, he gives 100 tries, breaking him once in the “Yeah, 6-3, 6-1, it’s amazing,” dian Wells in 2016, called on all 40-year-old Ivo Karlovic de- day’s return of Zinedine percent and more first set and three times in the he said. “Played a good match. of his experience to turn things feated India’s Prajnesh Gunne- Zidane as manager in often than second for a 6-3, 6-1 victory. He was missing some shots to- around against the American, swaran 6-3, 7-6 (7/3). place of the sacked not he “I’ve been sick for a week,” day, but at the end of the day I’m who had never won two ATP The Croatian veteran will face Santiago Solari may performs said the 21-year-old Zverev, who very happy with that.” Tour matches in a row until this Austrian seventh seed Dominic also make the situ- well. lost the Acapulco final to Aus- Struff next faces 13th-seeded week. Thiem, who beat France’s Gilles ation more diffi- “ I tralian Nick Kyrgios the week Canadian Milos Raonic, who “He came up with the goods Simon 6-3, 6-1. cult for Bale. don’t before Indian Wells began. rallied from 4-1 down in the and definitely pushed me sort of Bale and Zi- expect “That hasn’t changed, unfor- third set to beat US qualifier to the brink there where I was dane were bare- any- tunately. Marcos Giron 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. getting a little bit frustrated,” ly speaking dur- thing “I think I just got unlucky, Giron, 25, looked set to claim Raonic said. ing the second half of dif- I got a virus somewhere and the biggest win of a career that “I just kept trying to plug last season and Bale is ferent because that’s how it is.” has been hindered by two hip away. There were two games understood to be less he’s always bril- Zverev, the owner of three operations when he took a 4-1 that I had break chances to get than enthused by the liant around the Masters 1000 titles who has back into the third, and I didn’t Frenchman’s return. camp.” never made it to the quarter-fi- make it count. Luckily I made A clean slate is pos - Giggs said nals at Indian Wells, said he the last two count. sible but a parting of the forward would now focus on recuperat- Now it’s about “I’m proud of the way I com- the ways appears more has proved he is ing and preparing for the Miami peted today. That’s what got me likely. strong enough to Masters, where he’ll be hoping getting healthy and through,” said Raonic, who fell The Welshman is handle any flak that to improve on his runner-up about recovering to Struff in the first round at currently nursing an an- comes his way. finish to John Isner last year. and preparing Dubai last month. kle injury suffered on “I played for (Man- “Now it’s about getting myself for Miami, Champions League chester) United and healthy and about recovering because Miami is Djokovic on hold duty but you are open to criti- and preparing myself for Miami, the tournament I do World number one Novak Wales boss cism when you are at because Miami is the tourna- well in, history-wise.