 Tsonga (left) and Nadal share a 1-1 head-to-head record |
Rafael Nadal has a chance to avenge his Australian Open semi-final upset by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the fourth round of the Pacific Life Open. Nadal, who is defending champion in Indian Wells, saw off up-and-coming American wildcard Donald Young 6-1 6-3. Tsonga, now the world number 17, beat fellow Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 to set up the Nadal tie. Female top seed Ana Ivanovic also advanced to the fourth round with ease, dispatching Tathiana Garbin 6-3 6-0. Nadal took advantage of Young's early nerves to romp away with the first set, although the 18-year-old provided stiffer resistance in the second. But the American was unable to capitalise on his one break point at 3-5 down and Nadal served out for the match.  | 606: DEBATE |
"All matches are important for me but especially here where I am defending my title because last year I played my best tournament here," he said. "It's going to be important for me to serve well against Tsonga. He's strong in his serve. "From the baseline I must try to play a little bit more aggressively than in Australia."  Cannot play media. Sorry, this media is not available in your territory. Feature: Behind the scenes at Indian Wells
Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic moved into the fourth round with a 6-3 6-2 win over Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber. "I think I have gained something in my game," revealed the 20-year-old after winning in just over an hour. "I have figured out with experience how I should play in the first couple of rounds." French eighth seed Richard Gasquet blasted past Juan Ignacio Chela 6-2 6-1 to set up a meeting with ninth seed, American James Blake, who beat Carlos Moya 6-3 6-4. The upset of the day went to unseeded world number 52 Hyung-Taik Lee, who edged past Spanish fifth seed David Ferrer 7-6 (7-5) 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-3). There was no problem for women's top seed Ivanovic as she saw off Garbin to set up a fourth-round match with Italian 13th seed Francesca Schiavone, who beat compatriot Flavia Pennetta 6-3 6-4. "That's very positive," commented Ivanovic. "I finished the match strongly and did some things I was practising and working on, so I'm happy about that." Jelena Jankovic saw off Japanese veteran Ai Sugiyama 6-1 6-1, despite having her serve interrupted by swirling winds throughout the match. "I really tried to do my job out there, I didn't want to let her get into the match," said Jankovic.  Jankovic coped with swirling breezes in California to advance |
"Especially with the wind you cannot lose your concentration because as soon as you do that you start making a lot of errors and then you lose your rhythm. "I was tossing it and I had a different toss every time." American Lindsay Davenport battled through an error-strewn match to eventually notch up a 6-4 5-7 6-2 win over Taiwan's Chan Yung-Jan. "It was tough," added Davenport, who won the Indian Wells crown in 1997 and 2000. "Next time, hopefully I can keep my cool a little better and focus in on the task at hand." Briton Andy Murray and doubles partner Eric Butorac were beaten 6-4 6-4 in the second round by Richard Gasquet and Robert Lindstedt.
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