NEWS BNP PARIBAS OPEN, 7 MARCH 2014. INDIAN WELLS TENNIS GARDEN

COCO  VANDEWEGHE

Eighteen-year-old Victoria Duval, the sweetheart of last year’s US Open, nearly claimed a victory on her debut appearance at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. 
 The American won the opening set against Russian Alisa Kleybanova and broke open a 4-1 lead in the decisive set, but lost the final five games in a 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 defeat. Kleybanova was making her first appearance in Indian Wells since battling cancer. She was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in July 2011, four months after reaching the fourth round of the BNP Paribas Open. She made her WTA debut here in 2004, at the age of 14. 
 Coco Vandeweghe, 22, recorded her first tour-level win since the US Open, cruising past Romanian Alexandra Cadantu 6-4, 6-0 in one hour and 23 minutes. Vandeweghe, who resides in Rancho Santa Fe, faces a second-round meeting with eighth seed Petra Kvitova. 
The Czech won their one previous meeting last year at Wimbledon. 
 Taylor Townsend advanced earlier Thursday, finishing strong to claim a 7-6(1), 6-1 win over Italian Karin Knapp. The 17-year-old Townsend converted five of her six break points to defeat the 49th-ranked Knapp. In late night matches, Bethanie Mattek-Sands fell to France's Caroline Garcia 6-3, 7-5 on Stadium 1. Over on Stadium 2, Vania King came up short against Czech qualifier Barbora Zahlavova Strycova 6-0, 3-6, 6-2. 

CAMILA GIORGI ADVANCES IN BNP PARIBAS

 China’s Zheng Jie set a second-round clash with top-seeded countrywoman and reigning Australian Open champion Na Li after prevailing against Paula Ormaechea 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) in just under three hours. Zheng, 30, leads Li 4-2 in their head-to-head, but the 32-year-old Li has won their two most recent meetings, including two years ago in Indian Wells. Defending champion Maria Sharapova will open her campaign against Germany's Julia Goerges, a 6-1, 2-6, 6-3 winner over Jana Cepelova. Sharapova has a 3-0 record against the 86th-ranked Goerges.
Italian Francesca Schiavone came from a set down to defeat German Mona Barthel 3-6, 6-2, 6-2, and will next confront 16th-seeded Australian Sam Stosur for a 12th time. Schiavone defeated Stosur in the 2010 French Open final. Former World No. 1 Martina Hingis returned to the court to team up with Sabine Lisicki in doubles action, but was edged out by seventh-seeded Australians Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua 6-4, 6-7(0), 10-6.
The top seeds in the doubles draw, Hsieh Su-wei and Peng Shuai, wasted no time in recording a 6-1, 6-2 win over Suko Aoyama and Oksana Kalashnikova.