The third round of the 2016 BNP Paribas Open kicked off on Sunday as half of the women’s draw was in action in their quest to make the tournament’s fourth round and get one step closer to the winner’s trophy.
After yesterday’s major upset that saw Angelique Kerber make a second-round exit, Sunday went a lot smoother for top seeds, as Serena Williams, Agnieszka Radwanska and Petra Kvitova won their matches during the day session.
While Serena Williams had little trouble with Yulia Putintseva and Agnieszka Radwanska beat Monica Niculescu in straight sets, Petra Kvitova’s road into the fourth round was a lot more troublesome as the Czech double Wimbledon champ had her hands full with Sweden’s Johanna Larsson, needing a third-set tiebreak to decide the match in her favor.
The group of successful top seeds was completed in the evening session, as 2015 BNP Paribas Open champion Simona Halep had no problems getting past Russia’s Ekaterina Makarova.
The third round of the 2016 BNP Paribas Open will conclude on Monday as the tournament is picking up steam heading into its second week. Keep checking back to Women’s Tennis Blog as we’ll take you all the way to the final next weekend.
