Stan Wawrinka will look to avoid the upset bug in a wide-open top half of the Indian Wells draw when he faces Philipp Kohlschreiber on Monday. The third-round schedule also includes Spaniards Roberto Bautista Agut and Pablo Carreno Busta.
(3) Stan Wawrinka vs. (28) Philipp Kohlschreiber
Wawrinka is the highest seed remaining in the top half of the BNP Paribas Open following Andy Murray’s surprising exit at the hands of Vasek Pospisil on Saturday night. The third-ranked Swiss had no such trouble in his opener, as he cruised past Paolo Lorenzi 6-3, 6-4. Wawrinka is still just a mediocre 8-3 this season and trying to bounce back from a first-round loss in Dubai to Damir Dzumhur.
Up next for the No. 3 seed on Monday is a fifth career meeting with Kohlschreiber. All four of their previous encounters have gone Wawrinka’s way–three on clay and one on a hard court last year in Dubai via a 7-5, 6-1 decision. The two veterans most recently squared off at last season’s Monte-Carlo Masters, where Wawrinka got the job done 7-6(2), 7-5. Kohlschreiber headed to Indian Wells after blowing seven match points in a wild 6-7(4), 7-6(18), 6-1 Dubai loss to Murray but if the 31st-ranked German needed some good fortune in the wake of that setback, that is exactly what he got on Saturday. Kohlschreiber dropped the opening set against Alexandr Dolgopolov only to get a free pass to the third round when the Ukrainian retired at 1-1 in the second because of a groin injury. Wawrinka has not been at his best in 2017, so Kohlschreiber should have an opportunity to build on his luck and pull off a minor upset in this battle of one-handed backhands.
Pick: Kohlschreiber in 3
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(21) Pablo Carreno Busta vs. (16) Roberto Bautista Agut
It will be an all-Spanish affair when Bautista Agut and Carreno Busta face each other for the third time in their careers at the ATP level on Monday. They split their two previous meetings, with Bautista Agut surviving 4-6, 6-4, 6-0, 2-6, 6-4 at the 2015 U.S. Open before Carreno Busta triumphed 6-7(6), 7-6(1), 6-4 in last summer’s Winston-Salem final.
Carreno Busta is coming off a successful Golden Swing in which he reached semifinals in Buenos Aires and Sao Paulo in addition to a Rio de Janeiro runner-up performance. Boasting a 13-6 record this season, the world No. 23 made a smooth transition to hard courts by beating Peter Gojowyczk 7-5, 6-2 on Saturday. Bautista Agut advanced to the last 32 thanks to a victory by the exact same scoreline at Adrian Mannarino’s expense. The 16th seed is a stellar 13-3 in 2017 with a title in Chennai and a fourth-round showing at the Australian Open. On a hard court, an in-form Bautista Agut should have a slight edge over his similarly confident countryman.
Pick: Bautista Agut in 2
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Stan in two and RBA in three