Tennis

Roger Federer rolled past No. 25 seed Filip Krajinovic 6-2, 6-1 in pursuit of a record sixth BNP Paribas Open title on Monday, as a five-time champion. Federer improved to 65-5 since returning from a left knee injury last year with his third-round victory in a rare day match. Federer hit a running forehand passing shot to break at love and take the set 6-2. Federer cruised to a 3-0 lead in the second and closed out the win in 58 minutes.

Serena Williams and sister Venus won at the BNP Paribas Open to set up a third-round clash in the desert tournament. Serena got by No. 29 seed Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands 7-6 (5), 7-5 in the second round on Saturday in her return from a 14-month absence after giving birth to her first child.

Serena Williams said she was rusty on her victorious WTA Tour return, following 14 months away for the birth of her child. The former world No. 1 is through to the second round of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Californian, beating Zarina Diyas 7-5 6-3. Diyas is ranked 53rd in the world.

A rejuvenated, Venus Williams has defeated rusty, younger sister Serena 6-3 6-4 in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, her first win in the sibling rivalry since 2014. They played Monday night for the first time since last year's Australian Open final when a pregnant Serena won her 23rd Grand Slam title. Venus closed out the match on her second match point when Serena's forehand service return sailed long. It was one of Serena's 41 unforced errors, including 17 on the forehand side.

Five-time grand slam winner, Maria Sharapova has decided to split with her longtime coach after losing in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open. She announced the mutual parting with Sven Groeneveld on Friday, two days after she was beaten in straight sets by Naomi Osaka of Japan in her return to Indian Wells after a three-year absence.

Serena Williams makes her return to the pro tour after a 14-month absence with a first-round match at the BNP Paribas Open on Thursday. She will play Zarina Diyas of Kazakhstan in a night match at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Williams has played just one Fed Cup doubles match while away from the WTA Tour. The former No. 1 is unseeded and therefore didn't receive a first-round bye.