TENNIS - TEENAGER ANISIMOVA POSTS FIRST TOP-LEVEL VICTORY

American teenager Amanda Anisimova recorded her first top-level victory with a 6-2 6-2 thrashing of Pauline Parmentier at the BNP Paribas Open in California on Wednesday.

The 16-year-old’s poised and polished performance was in stark contact to the dismal display of Canadian Eugenie Bouchard, who was humbled 6-3 6-4 by American qualifier Sachia Vickery.

Anisimova, the junior women’s U.S. Open champion, was stronger than the 32-year-old Parmentier in every facet of the game on the slow hardcourt in Indian Wells.

“It’s very exciting. I’ve worked really hard for this so I’m proud of myself,” Anisimova told Tennis Channel, adding that adjusting to the senior ranks had been more mental than physical.

“The biggest thing is being tough mentally. I’ve learned about how to just be stronger during matches.”

She will face Russia’s 23rd seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the second round.

Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic, who was also a teenage prodigy but has had her career blighted by injury, also advanced by overcoming an awful start and a match point to beat Hungarian Timea Babos 1-6 6-1 7-6(4).

16-year-old wild card Anisimova notches her 1st WTA main draw win, defeating Parmentier 6-2 6-2.

Next up for the American: No. 23 Pavlyuchenkova. #BNPPO18 pic.twitter.com/dTv9cbGZhU
— BNP Paribas Open (@BNPPARIBASOPEN) March 7, 2018

Bencic was so focused on the task at hand rather than the score that she did not know at the time that she faced match point when serving down 5-4 and 40-30 in the final set.

“I didn’t realize it was match point actually,” she said.

“We were both very tired and it was so intense for us both. We were both just fighting and leaving our hearts out there.”

Former world number five Bouchard was outclassed by 100th-ranked Vickery in her first match since reaching a settlement with the U.S. Tennis Association (USTA) over a locker room fall during the 2015 U.S. Open.