Murray Fails to Master Paris

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Andy Murray was made to pay for failing to convert a match point as he lost to Poland's Jerzy Janowicz in three sets at the Paris Masters.

The third seed stood on the brink of victory when serving at 7-5 5-4, but some careless play let Janowicz off the hook and he took full advantage.

Janowicz dominated the latter stages, winning 5-7 7-6 (7-4) 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals at Paris-Bercy.

Murray will now head to London for next week's ATP World Tour Finals.

He follows top seed Novak Djokovic in making an early exit in Paris, while world number one Roger Federer chose not to compete as the leading players dealt with Paris and London being played back-to-back for the first time.

Murray said he was unsure how the early exit would affect himself and Djokovic at London.

"Only time will tell really," said the Scot. "A lot of the players will have had slightly different run-ins to the O2.

"Obviously me and Novak lost early this week; Roger didn't play, and then I think the rest of the guys are still in here. You never know, maybe the guys that go deep here they'll have confidence from having a good tournament. But they may arrive a little bit later and might take a while to get used to the conditions."

Murray had never been further than the quarter-finals in Paris and showed every sign of being motivated to improve on that, and boost his ranking points in the process, but for the third successive tournament he lost after holding match points.

At 6ft 8ins tall and close to a career-high ranking at 69, Janowicz provided a stern test from the start and Murray did well to edge the opening set with a single break in game 11.

A blistering forehand return off a thunderous Janowicz serve seemed to have given Murray the decisive breakthrough at 4-3 in the second set.

A regulation win appeared imminent when Murray moved to 30-0 and then match point at 5-4, only for some careless forehands to allow Janowicz back into the match with his first break of the day.

The pair had met once before in the Davis Cup three years ago, a match that Murray won with plenty to spare, but the 21-year-old Janowicz is enjoying a breakthrough year and began to dictate against the US Open champion.

He controlled the tie-break from the outset and broke twice in the decider as Murray's challenge faded dramatically.

The Scot managed to land a couple of blows in the closing moments but Janowicz held his nerve to serve out for the win of his career, falling to the floor before rushing to celebrate with his coach.

Janowicz said he was experiencing a "thousand different feelings" after the victory and admitted it had been an "unbelievable" week in Paris for him.

"I could never have expected something like this," he said. "I'm not sure what I'm supposed to say after this match, this is amazing."

In the doubles, Britain's Wimbledon champion Jonny Marray and Aussie partner Paul Hanley beat American top seeds Bob and Mike Bryan 6-4 6-7 10-5.

Marray is also preparing for next week's ATP Finals, where he will reunite with Denmark's Freddie Nielsen - his partner at Wimbledon, where they beat the Bryans en route to the title.

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Azarenka Unbeaten Streak Continues

Victoria Azarenka made short work of beating Maria Sharapova to win the Indian Wells title in 85 minutes.

The world number one broke her Russian opponent's serve six times on her way to a 6-2 6-3 victory in surprisingly cold conditions in California.

“She forces you to want to do a little bit more than either you should or would want to”Sharapova on Azarenka

It was the 22-year-old's 23rd consecutive win in 2012 and her second over Sharapova, following her Australian Open final success.

"I never dreamed about that," Azarenka said of her perfect start to the year.

"It's amazing. I just really focused on every match at a time. I'm not thinking too much ahead."

Azarenka, who won 6-3 6-0 in the Melbourne final in January, broke the world number two in the opening game before holding her own serve to take a 2-0 lead.

Sharapova won the third game but struggled to make any headway on the Azarenka serve, earning just four points on it in the first set.

The former world number one offered more resistance in the second set but when she finally broke for the first time, Azarenka already led 3-0.

Top seed Azarenka immediately broke back before Sharapova struck again in one of six breaks in the second set.

Serving to stay in the match, Sharapova hit a double fault before a high lob finished long to hand her opponent a 12th career title.

"I was just trying to do my best because I know Maria is a fighter," said Azarenka. "I always try to stay focused and apply as much pressure as I can.

"I'm just so glad that I have been able to be consistent and disciplined and professional every day."

Sharapova said: "She's extremely solid and she makes you work for every point. Ultimately she forces you to want to do a little bit more than either you should or would want to.

"She's playing with a lot of confidence. I just made too many unforced errors at the wrong time."

Isner Stuns Djokovic at Indian Wells

American John Isner reached the Indian Wells final with a shock victory over world number one Novak Djokovic.

Isner hit 20 aces on his way to a 7-6 (9-7) 3-6 7-6 (7-5) victory.

He recovered from a break down in the opening set to win it on a tie-break and, after Djokovic took the second, Isner won the decisive tie-break.

He will play third seed Roger Federer in Sunday's final after the Swiss former world number one beat second seed Rafael Nadal 6-3 6-4.

The result means 11th seed Isner, who is also in the men's doubles final with partner Sam Querrey, will break into the world's top 10 for the first time in his career.

But for Djokovic it is a second straight semi-final defeat after he lost to Britain's Andy Murray at the same stage in Dubai earlier this month.

"It's frustrating when somebody serves over 70% of their first serves in with that angle and with that speed and accuracy," Djokovic said.

"I knew I had to stay patient and just wait for the chance. I had some chances, I didn't use them. But I thought I played a really good match.

"He played very well when he needed to, so all credit to him," he added.

Isner, who will be appearing in an ATP Masters 1000 event for the first time, said: "That's why I play this game - to be able to enjoy moments like that.

"It was very special when that last ball went by him and I knew I had won the match. Not many people can say they've ever beaten the number one player in the world."

In the other semi-final, a straight-sets victory saw Federer advance to his third successive final with a 38th win in 40 matches since he lost to Djokovic in last year's US Open semi-final.

After a three-and-a-half-hour rain delay, world number two Nadal forced break points in the opening game but Federer produced four big serves to hold and did not look back in the set.

The second proved less plain sailing as the 16-time Grand Slam winner went two breaks up, only to see Nadal break back before the rain reappeared with Federer 5-4 up and on match point.

However, after a brief delay his concentration held and he closed out the match to improve his record against his great rival to 10-18.

Afterwards, both players seemed impressed with the 30-year-old's performance, Federer pronouncing himself pleasantly surprised with the quality of his game in wet and frequently windy conditions.

"I've not felt great this week and I didn't expect myself to play so well tonight," he said. "This is sometimes when you can pull off the biggest wins of your career.

"I know how well I played, so I'm just really pleased with my performance."

"He played fantastic, and I just congratulate him," Nadal agreed.

"He started the match playing more than unbelievable. His serve was with high percentage, and I wasn't able to play my usual tactic against him with those conditions."

Azarenka in Sharapova BNP Final

Victoria Azarenka extended her winning start to the year to 22 matches with a 6-4 6-3 semi-final win over Germany's Angelique Kerber at Indian Wells.

The world number one's WTA Tour run is the best start since Martina Hingis's 37-match unbeaten opening run in 1997.

The Belarusian faces Maria Sharapova, whose opponent Ana Ivanovic retired with a hip injury, in Sunday's final.

Russia's Sharapova, who lost to Azarenka in the Australian Open final,said: "I would love to get my revenge."

After clinching a sixth consecutive tournament final appearance, Azarenka said: "I am so excited. It's the first time for me to be in the final here. It's a great event and I love playing here."

Azarenka and Kerber both found their game disrupted by the breezy conditions and the second set was littered with service breaks, with the top seed breaking four times and the German twice.

The 22-year-old sealed victory by breaking her 18th-seeded opponent in the ninth game of the second set when Kerber hit a forehand long.

Azarenka added: "I really was impressed by the way Angelique was playing. She pushed me to raise my level and really dig to win that match."

Second seed Sharapova advanced to the final when Ivanovic was forced to retire with a left hip injury after losing the first set 6-4 and winning the opening game of the second.

"I hope it's nothing that's going to put me away from the court for too long because I feel physically very good," said the 15th seed, who was facing Sharapova for the first time since losing to her in the 2008 Australian Open final.

"I really felt like I have been playing my best tennis probably in a very, very long time. That's very encouraging."

Sharapova said: "It was unfortunate that it had to end this way. I thought towards the end of the first set we started playing high-quality tennis."

Ivanovic, 24, was scheduled to have an MRI scan on her hip on Saturday morning.

Djokovic Reaches BNP Semi-finals

World number one Novak Djokovic kept up his excellent 2012 form, reaching the semi-finals in Indian Wells with a 6-3 6-4 win over Spaniard Nicolas Almagro.

The Serbian broke the 12th seed twice in the first set and in the ninth game of the second to win in 86 minutes.

Djokovic will meet John Isner after the American beat Frenchman Gilles Simon 6-3 1-6 7-5.

Fifteenth seed Ana Ivanovic is through to the last four in the women's draw, where she will face Maria Sharapova.

World number one Victoria Azarenka will meet German 18th seedAngelique Kerber in the other last-four tie.

In the men's, Juan Martin Del Potro plays Roger Federer and David Nalbandian is pitted against Rafael Nadal to decide the make-up of the other semi-final match.

Top seed Djokovic, who won the tournament in 2008 and 2011, said: "It was always going to be a tough match. Almagro is an established top-10 player.

"What made me very happy and satisfied with my game today was my serving."

Ivanovic into Indian Wells Last Four

Serbian Ana Ivanovic, a 6-3 6-4 winner against France's Marion Bartoli, was upbeat after reaching the last four.

"I am definitely happy to be through. It was a tough match and I served well," she said. "We both started well but the eighth game of the second set was important. I just tried to stay low and make her run."

The meeting was a rematch of last year's quarter-final in which Bartoli triumphed on her way to the final - but here the seventh seed looked out of sorts.

Bartoli called for the doctor when she was trailing 2-1 in the second set and as she was having her blood pressure taken, she was caught on camera saying "everything is spinning".

"When I went on the court I was very dizzy and it was very hard for me to catch my breath," she said after the match.

Ivanovic's next opponent, Sharapova, faced a tougher route through, having to come from a set down to beat compatriot Maria Kirilenko 3-6 7-5 6-4.

Kirilenko, the 20th seed, had beaten Sharapova in their previous meeting at the 2010 Australian Open, took advantage of a slow start by the second seed to take the first set and a 2-0 lead in the second.

But Sharapova claimed that even at that point she was not concerned, saying: "I knew that I could have played better. If I felt like everything was going so well from my end and she was just playing so good, then I would have felt like, 'OK, well, she's just too good.'

"But I really felt like I could improve on so many things during the match and change things around. Little by little, I started doing those things better."

Murray Admits Umpire Row Regret

Andy Murray admitted he felt "like an idiot" after rowing with a female umpire at Indian Wells.

Britain's world No 4 blew up as he tried to challenge a line call playing doubles with his brother Jamie.

He hit the roof when the umpire said he had taken too long to decide.

Murray said: "I felt bad and I looked like an idiot because I was arguing with a lady.

"I looked like an idiot and I'm not. I just wanted to get clarification on the rule and no one even knows it."

The Murrays lost 6-7 7-6 10-5 to No 2 seeds Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor in their second-round clash.

Murray, who crashed out to world No 92 Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in the singles, immediately flew to Miami for the Sony Ericsson Open, starting on Monday.

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Victoria Azarenka Run Continues

Victoria Azarenka extended her 2012 winning streak to 20 matches on Tuesday, but Caroline Wozniacki crashed out of the BNP Paribas Open.

World No 1 Azarenka made short work of Julia Goerges, needing just 63 minutes to post a 6-3 6-1 victory and reach the quarter-finals.

In the quarter-finals she will face Polish fifth seed Agnieszka Radwanska, who led Jamie Hampton 6-3 4-6 3-0 when the American retired hurt.

A recent winner in Dubai, Radwanska is another of the WTA's form players - she has won 20 of her 23 matches this season, only losing to Azarenka - so the Belarusian is expecting a tight battle in the last eight.

Battles

"I think it's going to be a tough match, as usual. We have really tough battles," said Azarenka. "I'm really looking forward to playing her again. She's a great player and a very good challenge for anybody to play."

However, Azarenka's predecessor as world number one, Wozniacki, bowed out to another former top-ranked player, Ana Ivanovic.

Ivanovic stunned Wozniacki by posting a 6-3 6-2 win.

Second seed Maria Sharapova also made light work of her fourth-round match, beating Italy's Roberta Vinci 6-2 6-1, to set up an all-Russian quarter-final against Maria Kirilenko.

Kirilenko beat another Russian, Nadia Petrova, 6-1 5-7 6-2, while there were also wins on Tuesday for Marion Bartoli, French Open champion Li Na and Angelique Kerber.

Wozniacki Through Paribas R 3

Defending champion Caroline Wozniacki came from a set down to beat Sweden's Sofia Arvidsson in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

Dane Wozniacki, the fourth seed, initially struggled with her serve on a cool evening and dropped the opening set 6-3.

But she rediscovered her touch to take the second 7-5 and broke three times in the decider, winning it 6-2 to complete victory in two hours and 37 minutes.

"I knew it was going to be a tough match," said Wozniacki. "I've known Sophia since I was 12 or 13 and we know each other's games so well.

"She just came out from a win in Memphis and I knew she was on fire. I'm so happy with this win."

Wozniacki will play another former world number one, Serb Ana Ivanovic, in the fourth round. Ivanovic was a 6-7 (8/10) 6-3 6-2 winner against Kazakhstan's Ksenia Pervak.

Second seed Maria Sharapova enjoyed an easier route into the fourth round with a straight-sets victory over Romanian Simona Halep.

The Russian prevailed 6-3 6-4 in one hour and 36 minutes, although she had to fend off a second-set fightback from Halep, who won four games in a row from 5-0 down before finally succumbing.

"I played extremely well the first four or five games of that set -almost too good in a way," said Sharapova.

"I was going for a lot and making a lot of shots. Then felt like I almost started going for a little bit too much.

"Instead of being patient I had a few errors that I shouldn't have made. All of a sudden your opponent gains confidence because they have nothing to lose. It's a bad situation but I got it together in the end."

Earlier on Monday, Nadia Petrova upset US Open champion Sam Stosur in their third-round clash.

The Russian, seeded 30, pulled off a 6-1 6-7 (6/8) 7-6 (7/5) win over the sixth-seeded Australian, who has struggled this season following her triumph at Flushing Meadows last September.

Petrova served 15 aces during the match before clinching victory after two hours and 46 minutes on court.

In contrast, seventh seed Marion Bartoli needed only 71 minutes to dispatch South Africa's Chanelle Scheepers 6-2 6-0.

And there were also wins for Maria Kirilenko, Roberta Vinci and Lucie Safarova at Indian Wells on day six of the tournament.

Flu Decimates BNP Paribas Field

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal breezed through to the third round of the ATP & WTA BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells as a flu bug wreaked havoc on the men's and women's draws.

Reigning Wimbledon champion and WTA Player of the Year Petra Kvitova suffered an early exit to 19 year-old American Christina McHale. But the biggest problem eating into the draw was a stomach virus that has forced at least eight players to withdraw or retire within the last two days, including men's 14th seed Gael Monfils and women's ninth seed Vera Zvonareva.

Third seed Federer admitted he was feeling a bit sick but still managed to wrap up a comfortable 6-4, 6-1 win over wild card Denis Kudla.

Federer hammered eight aces and won 79 per cent of his first serve points in the 57 minute contest and later revealed that his family are suffering with illness.

"We are fighting something of our own in our family," he said. "I have a bit of a combination. Not a terrible temperature but I have some things going on. I am the best off in the family. The rest of them are struggling much more."

Federer, who won three titles in Indian Wells from 2004-2006, will face hard-serving Canadian Milos Raonic, who beat Carlos Berlocq in straight sets 6-4, 6-2, in the next round.

Nadal, meanwhile, won his first match since defeat at the Australian Open final when he lost only four games on his way to defeating Leonardo Mayer 6-1, 6-3.

"It's fantastic. I am happy to start with a victory," the world No 2 said. "I am taking it day by day. It's not easy to be back after a while without competition.

Nadal, a two-time winner in Indian Wells, will now face fellow Spaniard Marcel Granollers, who beat Tommy Haas of Germany 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.

Indian Sign as Murray Beaten

Andy Murray suffered a surprise 6-4 6-2 defeat to world number 92 Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in his opening match at Indian Wells.

Murray had not lost a set in his two previous meetings with the Spaniard, but his backhand failed him as he went out in an hour and 40 minutes.

Garcia-Lopez, 23rd in the world in 2011, broke twice in the second set to progress to the third round.

Murray lost to American Donald Young in his first match at last year's event.

"I have to go away and think about what happened," said Murray.

"I played great in practice, was hitting the ball really well. I felt pretty fresh.

"I didn't move my best tonight, but it didn't feel like I was moving really badly. He hardly missed the ball the whole match. He was playing with a lot of spin.

"It almost felt like playing the match on a clay court. I wasn't able to hit through the court and I squandered so many chances."

The Scot's defeat by Young in California 12 months ago was part of a dramatic slump of form in the wake of losing to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final.

He lost to Djokovic again this year in the season-opening Grand Slam, but appeared to have recovered from the defeat far better,beating the Serbian world number one in straight sets on his way to the final of his next event in Dubai.

And Murray, who squandered all seven of the break points he forced against Garcia-Lopez, insists he feels better than he did at this stage of the 2011 season.

"In comparison to how I felt coming in here last year, it was night and day," he added.

"I was feeling way more focused and confident, so I'm not sure exactly why that happened tonight.

"I wasn't able to hit through the court and I squandered so many chances."

Garcia-Lopez held Murray at bay through the first eight games of the match, then turned the tables, snatching a break as his opponent netted a forehand in the ninth.

After serving out in confident style, Garcia-Lopez made immediate in-roads into Murray's serve in the second set and the world number four could not summon up a response as he wrestled for control of his errant backhand.

Murray dropped a double break and 5-2 behind with a weak forehand into the net and Garcia-Lopez ensured there was no way back as he advanced to a third-round meeting with 19-year-old American Ryan Harrison.

Djokovic, who will attempt to become only the third man in history to hold all four Grand Slam titles simultaneously at Roland Garros in June, had no such problems.

The 24-year-old thrashed Kazakhstan qualifier Andrey Golubev 6-3 6-2 in one hour 20 minutes and will face South Africa's Kevin Anderson next.

Tomas Berdych will take on former world number one Andy Roddick in an intriguing third-round match after the Czech recovered from the loss of the opening set to overcome Ukrainian Sergiy Stakhovsky 6-7 6-3 6-4.

In the women's draw, former world number ones Caroline Wozniackiand Maria Sharapova both advanced to the third round with 6-2 6-0 victories.

Sharapova, the 2006 champion, swept past Argentina's Gisela Dulko in an hour and six minutes, with defending champion Wozniacki taking two minutes more to dispatch Ekaterina Makarova.

It's Indian Wells for Andy Murray

Andy Murray will begin his BNP Paribas Open campaign in the early hours of Sunday morning after being given a bye to the second round at Indian Wells.

Murray will face Spain's Guillermo Garcia-Lopez after 0430 GMT (2030 local time) in California.

Meanwhile, Murray and brother Jamie have been drawn against Colin Fleming and Ross Hutchins in an all-British men's doubles encounter.

Last weekend, Fleming and Hutchins won their second title together in Florida.

However, Murray is the sole remaining British hope in the singles after fellow Scot Elena Baltacha was beaten by Germany's Julia Goerges in her second-round match.

Murray is seeded fourth at Indian Wells, and some of the better-known names in the same quarter of the draw include Viktor Troicki, Gilles Simon, John Isner and Mardy Fish.

First, he will be hoping to avoid a repeat of his shock defeat at the first hurdle by Donald Young in last year's compeition.

Murray, who has recently taken on Ivan Lendl as his coach, admitted: "We have a lot in common.

"We both like hard work. He was one of the first guys to start taking the physical side of the game seriously.

"He hasn't come in with a massive ego and told everybody what to do."