Jack Draper began his Indian Wells title defence with a hard-fought 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 win over Roberto Bautista Agut, coming from a set down in his first match since returning from an eight-month injury layoff. The British No 1, who wore a protective sleeve on his left arm, struggled with wayward returns in the opening set but rallied with a more aggressive approach in the second, breaking for a 2-0 lead and closing out the set with confidence.
Draper, 24, missed extensive time with an arm injury and played his first ATP Tour event since Queen's last June in Dubai last week, losing in the second round. Against Bautista Agut, he saved three break points in the deciding set before sealing victory in one hour and 46 minutes. “It felt amazing. I have really felt good here,” Draper said. “I was a little bit underprepared because of the amount of tennis I have missed.”
In the women's event, British No 2 Sonay Kartal produced a superb performance to upset No 20 seed Emma Navarro 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (2). Kartal, ranked 54th, twice broke back in the final set, saved a match point at 5-6, and dropped just two points in the deciding tie-break. “I am just super proud of how I fought through that,” Kartal said. “It would have been easy to throw in the towel, but it is matches like that which make you super proud of yourself.”
Meanwhile, Iga Swiatek fought back to beat qualifier Kayla Day 6-0, 7-6 (2), having trailed 5-1 in the second set. Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina also advanced, defeating Hailey Baptiste 7-6 (5), 2-6, 6-2.
