American wild card Katie Volynets ousted No.38 Mirra Andreeva in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open, winning 7-5, 7-5. The victory is Volynets' first Top 40 win of the season.

Ranked No.131, Volynets will face No.6 Ons Jabeur in the second round. 

The 22-year-old Californian proved her resilience against 16-year-old Andreeva, who was making her tournament debut. Andreeva served for each set but Volynets found a way through to extend each set and pocket a gritty straight-set victory. 

Volynets reached a career-high No.74 last spring but saw her ranking dropped in January after failing to defend her third-round points at the Australian Open. Despite the ranking drop, Volynets has posted solid results to start the year. She has made one tour-level quarterfinal in Hua Hin and two semifinals at the WTA 125-level.

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Facing Andreeva for the first time, Volynets was broken twice in the first set but responded immediately each time to break right back. As Andreeva's frustration mounted, Volynets ramped up the physicality of the match, extending points and forcing the prodigious teen to take more risk. Andreeva stood up to the challenge, but could not pull away.

The turning point came deep in the second set with Volynets serving to stay in the set, down 5-3. Andreeva earned four set points but could not cross the line. Volynets fought off those break points to hold to 5-4 and pounced on the rattled Andreeva.

"I was honestly so zoned in that I didn't comprehend that I was facing set points against me," Volynets said on Tennis Channel. "I found that even when I was down a break, I had good ideas. I just wasn't executing."

But having come from the brink, Volynets won the last four games of the match to seal the win after 2 hours and 7 minutes. 

Elsewhere on Day 1, Camila Giorgi knocked out San Diego champion Katie Boulter 6-3, 6-2 in the first round. The Italian will face the Czech Republic's Linda Noskova in the second round. 

More to follow...