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Swiatek dominates at BNP Paribas Open; Murray advances

Swiatek, the defending champion who took over the No. 1 ranking nearly a year ago, won 6-0, 6-1. She lost just seven points in the first set

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Iga Swiatek hits a shot as she won her second round match against Claire Liu. — Reuters

By AP

Published: Sun 12 Mar 2023, 7:38 PM

Top-ranked Iga Swiatek routed Claire Liu in 65 minutes to win her opening match at the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday.

Swiatek, the defending champion who took over the No. 1 ranking nearly a year ago, won 6-0, 6-1. She lost just seven points in the first set.

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Carlos Alcaraz, the second-ranked men's player, defeated qualifier Thanasi Kokkinakis, 6-3, 6-3. Alcaraz reached the semifinals in the desert last year and could return to the No. 1 spot for the first time since January if he wins the title.

Taylor Fritz, the defending men's champion, rallied past former NCAA singles champion Ben Shelton, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Shelton’s biggest serve reached 147 mph.

“I expected him to come out serving bombs, playing well,” Fritz said. "I was ready for it, I just had to regroup, just find a way and problem solve. He’s an incredible player and it was an extremely tough first match to come out and play, so I’m happy to get through it.”

Andy Murray beat Radu Albot, 6-4, 6-3 in his first straight-set victory of the year to set up a third-round match with Jack Draper. Murray had just 18 unforced errors to 35 for Albot, and never faced a break point on his serve while firing six aces.

AP

Published: Sun 12 Mar 2023, 7:38 PM

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