Yulia Putintseva needed just 83 minutes on Wednesday to post a 6-4, 6-2 victory over 2021 champion Paula Badosa in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, Calif.
Putintseva converted five of eight break points while defeating Badosa for just the second time in six career meetings. Her previous win came when Badosa retired due to injury during the second set of a second-round match in Toronto in 2022.
The Kazakhstan product took advantage of 47 unforced errors and 10 double faults by Badosa to snap a 10-match losing streak at WTA 1000-level events.
“Definitely a tough first round for me,” Putintseva said. “Paula, she’s a great player, always fighting. You can see every game she was there, trying to come back. I’m happy and pleased with my game today.”
Badosa, the former World No. 2 from Spain, had four aces but has hurt by her 59% first-serve accuracy.
Putintseva will face 17th-seeded Clara Tauson of Denmark in the second round.
Former U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens stumbled in her first match since the Australian Open, losing 6-4, 6-1 to Colombia’s Camila Osorio.
Americans McCartney Kessler, Ann Li and Caty McNally dropped their opening matches.
Turkey’s Zeynep Sonmez knocked off Kessler 7-6 (7), 6-0, while Australia’s Talia Gibson beat Li 6-3, 7-5. Japan’s Himeno Sakatsume topped American Alycia Parks 6-4, 6-3. Andorra’s Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva edged McNally 6-2, 6-7 (4), 6-4.
Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic defeated Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse 7-5, 6-2, while Austria’s Anastasia Potapova outlasted Canada’s Marina Stakusic 4-6, 6-1, 7-5.
Romania’s Sorana Cirstea outbattled Germany’s Tatjana Maria 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, Russian Anastasia Zakharova was a 6-2, 6-2 winner over Germany’s Ella Seidel and Aussie Kimberly Birrell beat Russia’s Oksana Selekhmeteva 6-1, 6-4. Spain’s Jessica Bouzsazs Maneiro outlasted Brazil’s Beatrix Haddad Maia 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-1.
Russia’s Anna Blinkova got past Hungary’s Dalma Galfi 6-4, 7-5, and Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian eked out a 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (6) win over Indonesia’s Janice Tjen.
Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova rallied to eliminate Canada’s Bianca Andreescu 6-7 (6), 6-0, 6-1, and Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska thrashed China’s Shuai Zhang 6-3, 6-2.
–Field Level Media
