No.6 seed Coco Gauff of the United States moved into the third round of the BNP Paribas Open with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Spanish qualifier Cristina Bucsa on Friday night.
"It was a good match for me, especially with the conditions a lot slower at nighttime," Gauff said afterward. "She's not an easy player. She can play tricky. I watched a lot of her film the night before, and she's a great player and she comes out with some unexpected shots. I think she'll continue to improve over the future."
Here are some key numbers from Gauff's first win of the fortnight:
12: Gauff picked up her 12th win of the season with her 77-minute victory over Bucsa, who made her Top 100 debut in January and is currently ranked No.90. Gauff's 12-3 win-loss record for the year includes her third career singles title, which she won in Auckland in January.
3: Gauff made it three straight years into the Indian Wells third round by toppling Bucsa in their first meeting. Gauff has never failed to make the third round of the BNP Paribas Open -- but she is yet to progress into the Round of 16 in the desert.
2021, 2022, 2023 = 3R@CocoGauff secures her place into the @BNPPARIBASOPEN third round for the third straight year! pic.twitter.com/UXAPff7OqQ
— wta (@WTA) March 11, 2023
19: Another win and a new career-best showing in Indian Wells would be an excellent birthday present for Gauff -- she will turn 19 on Monday.
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13: On Friday, Gauff and Bucsa split the first four games of the match to stand at 2-2, but Gauff then went on a 13-point winning streak to 5-2, 0-15. Despite having her streak snapped there, Gauff still broke Bucsa for the second straight time to seal the one-set lead.
1-for-7: Gauff served for the match at 5-3 and held a match point in that game, but she missed a forehand long on that opportunity. Bucsa then got back on serve at 5-4, breaking Gauff for the first time on her seventh break point of the night (and her fourth of that game).
27: However, in the following game, Gauff broke Bucsa for the fourth time and picked up her 27th straight win over a player ranked outside the Top 50. Gauff finished the match with three more winners and eight fewer unforced errors than Bucsa.
Pegula comeback thwarts Giorgi's upset bid
No.3 Jessica Pegula rallied from a set down to defeat Merida champion Camila Giorgi 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 to kick off her Indian Wells campaign. Pegula will face No.26 seed Anastasia Potapova in the third round.
Pegula overcame a quick start by the Italian, who staved off off triple break point in her opening service game of the match to hold and build a quick 4-0 lead. But after taking the opening set 6-3, Giorgi would win jus three games for the remainder of the match. As Pegula found her baseline range, Giorgi failed to match her consistency and the top-ranked American held her off to close out the win.
Stat of the match: Pegula generated 20 break points on Giorgi's serve, converting seven times.