Samantha Stosur and Maria Sharapova might clash in the third round of Indian Wells – Tennis News
Aussie tennis star, Samantha Stosur, has a relatively easy draw in the Indian Wells tournament starting on Wednesday. It’s a joint event taking into account both Association of Tennis Professional (ATP) and Women Tennis Association
(WTA) performers at the hard courts of California. The tournament has a huge prize money of $US 11 million ($A10.3 million).
The reigning US Open champion from Australia has never passed the semi-final stage of the Indian Wells. This time she should not face any trouble reaching the third round of the tournament. She has a Bye in the first round and
will probably go head-to-head against the Russian tennis ace, Nadia Petrova, unless she is capsized by the wildcard entrant, Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania.
World number two, Maria Sharapova is also one of the players to get a straight Bye in the first round before facing the Aussie tennis ace, Jelena Dokic, who will try to save an upset against the Argentine doubles specialist, Gisela
Dulko, in the opening round.
If Stosur and Sharapova go through the early tests in the second round, they will lock horns to book a spot in the quarter-final of the tournament. It is going to be an enthralling battle between the two world class performers
with Sharapova having an edge of superior rank and her prime form in the recent past.
Stosur’s compatriot, Dokic, is going through a dismal time at the courts and wasn’t able to defend her title in Kuala Lumpur, having lost in the second round clash against another Aussie star, Olivia Rogowska. It was an epic three-setter
but the defending champion didn’t go through it with a success under her belt.
World number one, Victoria Azarenka, also has a first round Bye and awaits the winner of the match between the oldest contestant of the tournament, Jill Craybas and the German booming starlet, Mona Barthel. She will hopefully see
the Russian tennis icon, Svetlana Kuznetsova, in the third round of the contest.
Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic also has a relatively easy draw ahead of her and she should easily make it to the quarter-finals of the tournament. The potential competitors for her in the second and third round are Barbora Strycova
Zahlavova and the American prolific tennis ace, Christina McHale respectively.
It’s going to be a very exciting tournament, especially if big guns make it to the advance rounds of the tournament and contest against one another.
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