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Best Of Round 2: Top Matches, Moments And More From Friday And Saturday
6 Min Read · March 9, 2025
The second round came to an end at the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday. You know what that means — it’s time for our second-round awards:
Get TicketsWhen Alexander Zverev turned around a break deficit against Tallon Griekspoor in the second set, history was about to repeat itself. The Dutchman with the potent serve always seemed to test Zverev but never get the win.
When top-seed Zverev couldn’t serve out the match in the second, though, the complexion changed. A nervous Griekspoor missed out on five match points serving at 6-5 in the third to prompt a tiebreak. Surely Zverev would win the ensuing tiebreak. But it didn’t happen, as Griekspoor converted on his sixth match point.
Zverev became the first top seed in the men’s draw in Indian Wells to lose his first match since Andy Murray in 2017. The German got sick during February’s Golden Swing in South America, after Jannik Sinner didn’t give him much of a chance in January’s Australian Open final.
What’s been the biggest issue? “I think I'm serving quite badly the last few weeks,” said Zverev. “My second serve is fine, but my first serve is terrible. From the back of the court I'm not playing great. It's everything. You can't really name one thing.”
Madison Keys hadn’t played since winning the Australian Open in January to open her Grand Slam account. When the native of Illinois returned on Saturday, she picked up right where she left off. In defeating last year’s quarterfinalist Anastasia Potapova 6-3, 6-0, the newly turned 30-year-old blasted 28 winners and only hit 10 unforced errors. She extended her winning streak to 13.
Grigor Dimitrov, when it comes to winning spectacular points, is the gift that keeps giving. He might be 33 but the Bulgarian covers the court exceptionally well, as he proved against Nuno Borges on Saturday night.
Borges hit a drop shot and probably thought he would win the point. Not only did Dimitrov get to the ball, but he created an outrageous angle on his forehand to steal the point. Borges couldn’t believe it.
Botic van de Zandschulp seems to produce his top tennis against the game’s elite. Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal lost to van de Zandschulp last year, then Griekspoor’s Davis Cup teammate overcame Novak Djokovic in three sets on Saturday.
If you’re wondering who beat van de Zandschulp in qualifying, it was Italian Matteo Gigante.
Van de Zandschulp isn’t the lone lucky loser into the third round.He was joined by Sonay Kartal. Kartal beat 16th-seed Beatriz Haddad Maia, 6-2, 6-1.
Dayana Yastremska is well known for her ball striking ability. When the Ukrainian’s game is working, she’s tough to stop.
Ons Jabeur certainly knew that before their second-round match and then experienced it on court. The three-time Grand Slam finalist only won 22 percent of her second serve points, the fifth lowest tally in her Grand Slam/WTA main draw career. Yastremska meets two-time desert winner Iga Swiatek in the third round.
Frances Tiafoe was in big trouble against Damir Dzumhur on Friday night. He trailed 5-1, 30-0 in the second set against the rejuvenated Bosnian qualifier with terrific touch. A third set looked like it was on the way — but then Tiafoe won five straight games to put himself in a position to serve for the match. He was broken, though. The roller coaster ride continued in the tiebreak, as Dzumhur led 6-3. Tiafoe saved all three set points thanks to backhand miscues from the World No. 84 and then saved another one to advance in straight sets.
Thiago Seyboth Wild saved match points in the first round against Alexandre Muller. The Brazilian with the ferocious forehand thwarted five more against Stefanos Tsitsipas on Friday before the Greek finally ended the match.
One of them was incredible. Seyboth Wild slipped after hitting his approach shot, giving Tsitsipas a seemingly passing shot with his opponent on the ground. Tsitsipas, however, put his attempt into the net to temporary prolong proceedings.
A year ago in Indian Wells, Coco Gauff started her tournament by winning a third-set tiebreak against Clara Burel. She trailed 4-0 in the final set. On Saturday, the Florida native was taken to another third-set tiebreak in her opening match against Moyuka Uchijima. This time, Gauff led the third set 4-0. Gauff made the semifinals in 2024, eventually losing to Maria Sakkari — who she plays on Monday.
Daria Kasatkina’s first match in the desert this year came against a Grand Slam winner, Sofia Kenin. Kenin sizzled in the first round against qualifier Maddison Inglis and kept it going early against the World No. 12, grabbing a 5-0 lead. In the second set, Kenin led by a break at 4-3. But as she has done numerous times in her career, the 2018 finalist hung in there and won in a third set. Kenin put up stiff resistance, though, exiting on a seventh match point.
In a match filled with crazy rallies, one particularly stood out between Daniil Medvedev and Yunchaokete Bu under the lights. It lasted 34 shots, with Medvedev keeping the exchange going with a slice off a Bu smash. He ended the point by authoring a drop shot that gave Bu little chance.
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