Eugenie Bouchard battled past Sloane Stephens 7-5 7-5 to set up a third round match against Swiss Timea Bacsinszky at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.
These young players have followed a similar path in recent years. Both are coming back after difficult seasons and have showed good form in the first two months of the year. Number 21 seed Sloane Stephens has already claimed two WTA International tournaments this season in Auckland and Acapulco. In the final of the mexican tournament the US player beat Dominika Cibulkova in a third set tie-break.
The young Canadian player is continuing her good period of form in 2016 reaching the third round at Indian Wells after finishing runner-up in Hobart and Kuala Lumpur. She came back from a set down to beat Risa Ozaki 2-6 6-4 6-2 in the first round at Indian Wells after being five points away from defeat.
Stephens won two of their three previous head-to-head matches and prevailed in their previous clash at the 2013 China Open in Beijing by 6-1 1-6 6-4.
Stephens broke serve twice thanks to a couple of double faults from Bouchard but the Canadian player rallied to get both breaks back. From 3-3 both players went on serve until Bouchard led 6-5. In the 12th game Bouchard hit a huge forehand return down the line to clinch the first set.
Stephens bounced back from a 0-2 deficit in the second set by winning two consecutive games to claw her way back into the match. The second set did not feature other breaks and went on serve until 4-4 when the US player broke serve again with the help of a double fault from Bouchard at 30-40. Stephens went up 40-0 when she served for the second set but she wasted five set points at 5-4. Bouchard won the next two games to clinch the second set 7-5.
Ana Ivanovic came back from a set down to overcome Camila Giorgi 2-6 6-2 7-6 (7-5). Ivanovic was broken on all her service games to drop the first set 2-6. At 0-30 Ivanovic broke serve as Giorgi made a double fault and two unforced errors. Ivanovic saved three break-back points at 3-2 before getting a double break in the next game as Giorgi made two double faults.
The third set started with six consecutive breaks of serve. Giorgi failed to convert two match points at 5-4 in the third set before losing 5-7 at the tie-break. Giorgi earned her first match points with a return winner at 40-40 but she wasted it with a forehand winner. The Italian brought up her second match point with a backhand winner but Ivanovic saved it with her service winner. In the tie-brek Giorgi took a 3-1 lead with a forehand winner but Ivanovic drew level to 3-3 as Giorgi made a backhand unforced error. The tie-break went on serve until 5-5. Ivanovic earned her first match point with her service winner and converted it after 2 hours and six minutes.
Roberta Vinci battled past Margarita Gsparyan 6-3 6-7 (7-9) 7-6 (7-5). Gasparyan broke serve to love in the third game of the first set but Vinci bounced back from 1-3 to win five consecutive games and won the first set 6-3.
Gasparyan broke serve to take a 3-1 lead in the second set but Vinci broke back in the fifth game as Gasparyan made three unforced errors. The second set went on serve until the tie-break where Gasparyan took a 6-1 lead. Vinci bounced back by saving five consecutive set points and earned a match point at 7-6. Gasparyan saved it with forehand winner before winning the tie-break on her sixth set point.
Gasparyan got a double break to go up 4-0. Vinci came back by recovering one of the two breaks and clawed her way back into the match to 3-4 but Gasparyan held her serve to love. Vinci saved two match points at 3-5 15-40. The Italian broke serve in the 10th game to draw level to 5-5 as Gasparyan made her sixth double fault before taking a dramatic win in the tie-break after two hours and 48 minutes.
Angelique Kerber was not the only high-seeded player to crash out as Garbine Muguruza lost against Christina McHale 7-5 6-1. Muguruza struggled on her serve and was broken five times. Belinda Bencic overcame Lauren Davis 6-3 3-6 6-3. Magdalena Rybarikova came back from a set down to edge past Daria Gavrilova 2-6 7-5 6-4. Victoria Azarenka cruised past Zarina Diyas 6-3 6-2. Russian teenager Daria Kasatkina beat Anna Lena Friedsman 7-5 6-3. Samanta Stosur fought back from a set down to edge Yanina Wickmayer 2-6 6-4 7-6 (8-6).
