Mboko beats Kalinskaya in straight sets, sets up Anisimova clash
Tenth seed Victoria Mboko scored a straightforward straight-sets win over Anna Kalinskaya to advance to the round of 16 at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells on Sunday.
The match between Mboko and Kalinskaya began with both players comfortably holding serve through the first nine games. The first break point of the match came in the 10th game on Kalinskaya's serve, which Mboko converted to take the first set 6-4.
There's no stopping Victoria Mboko 😤#TennisParadise pic.twitter.com/cRpobQZAwY
— wta (@WTA) March 9, 2026
The Canadian teenager, making her debut at Indian Wells, then stormed through the first five games of the second set and closed out the match 6-4, 6-1 in 1 hour, 4 minutes.
She improved to 3-0 against Kalinskaya on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz and is now 11-0 this year against players ranked outside the top 20.
The win also marked her 15th victory of the 2026 season, second only to Elina Svitolina, who has 16 match wins so far this year. Mboko has already reached two finals this year - finishing runner-up in Adelaide and Doha.
She will next face sixth seed Amanda Anisimova for a spot in the quarterfinals. This will be the first meeting between the two players on the WTA Tour.