Indian Wells 2022 - Disappointment for the Brits as Heather Watson and Katie Boulter crash out
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Updated 11/03/2022 at 01:58 GMT
Great Britain's women endured mixed fortunes in round one of the 2022 Indian Wells tournament. Heather Watson and Katie Boulter were both beaten in straight sets while Harriet Dart set up a showdown with Elina Svitolina after Ana Konjuh retired injured. British No.1 Emma Raducanu had a bye and will face France's Caroline Garcia in round two.
Heather Watson of Great Britain plays a forehand against Tereza Martincova of the Czech Republic in their first round match on Day 4 of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells
Image credit: Getty Images
Heather Watson suffered a comprehensive defeat to Tereza Martincova as her Indian Wells campaign came to an abrupt halt in round one.
The British number two went down 6-2 6-1 in just one hour and 19 minutes as the world number 42 from the Czech Republic dominated in swirling weather conditions.
Watson had come through qualifying with a hard-fought victory over Japan's Mai Hontama to make the main draw but never looked like pulling off a surprise against an opponent who executed her game-plan with real authority.
Despite being pegged back to 2-2 after claiming an early break, Martincova raced through the gears to take four games in a row and tick off the opener in 45 minutes.
The second set was even more one-sided as Watson lost her way tactically, allowing Martincova to comfortably set up a clash with reigning champion, Paula Badosa in round two.
Elsewhere, Katie Boulter suffered a similar fate as she was beaten 6-3 6-2 by Italy’s Jasmine Paolini.
The windy conditions did not seem to favour the server as both players struggled to hold in the early stages. Paolini, the world number 46, was less erratic from the baseline and saved two break back points before serving out the set from deuce.
Paolini broke immediately at the start of Set 2 and despite some plucky work from the British qualifier, she could not make the most of her limited openings and the Italian eased through to set up a round two clash with the highest seed in the draw, Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka.
There was better news for Harriet Dart who faces a testing showdown with Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina on Friday after seeing off the injured Ana Konjuh.
The 25-year-old Dart was leading 6-1 3-1 when her Croatian opponent was forced to retire.
It means Dart joins British number one Emma Raducanu in round two after the US Open champion received a first round bye. No.11 seed Raducanu will face France’s Caroline Garcia next.
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