Five Things to Watch Tuesday: Venus Aims for Quarterfinals

Venus Rising (Again)

After dispatching her sister in Venus–Serena XXIX, the elder Williams will play for a spot in the BNP Paribas Open quarterfinals, her opponent No. 21 seed Anastasia Sevastova of Latvia. They have met just once before, with Williams claiming their quarterfinal in Kaohsiung in 2016.

Vive La France!

It’ll be an all-French showdown when Gael Monfils meets Pierre-Hugues Herbert in the third round on Tuesday. For the first time in 10 appearances in Indian Wells, Monfils arrived here as an unseeded entrant, a first-round bye no longer in play. But La Monf, arguably the ATP Tour’s most athletic force, isn’t crying in his proverbial soup du jour. He saved a match point in downing 15th seed John Isner in the second round, 6-7(5), 7-6(3), 7-5, and is focused on a return trip to the Sweet 16.

You’re My No. 1

World No. 1 and women’s top seed Simona Halep, the BNP Paribas Open titlist in 2015, continues her push toward the final against Qiang Wang of China. Halep will remain atop the WTA rankings unless Caroline Wozniacki wins the title here at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.

Homeboys

Two American men remain alive in the bottom half of the draw, including world No. 10 Jack Sock and No. 21 Sam Querrey. Sock, a semifinalist here last year, meets 28th seed Feliciano Lopez of Spain (Stadium 1 not before 7 p.m.), while Querrey is set to face surprise qualifier Yuki Bhambri of India (Stadium 3).

Bank of the West Day

In celebration of Bank of the West Day, tennis fans will receive a complimentary cinch sack. Be sure to arrive early to grab yours before they’re gone, and then head over to the Bank of the West booth to pick up an earpiece radio to listen to live audio coverage from Tennis Channel and ESPN.