Venus advances in straight sets at Indian Wells

INDIAN WELLS, Calif. (AP) — Venus Williams is turning back her own clock at the BNP Paribas Open, moving into the fourth round with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over qualifier Christina McHale.

Williams is seeking her 50th career WTA Tour title in the desert, where she has never won the event. And at 38, she’s showing vintage form despite not playing very often.

Ranked 36th in the world, Williams endured three sets in her first two matches. She rallied past Andrea Petkovic in the opening round and followed up by outlasting No. 3 seed Petra Kvitova in a third-set tiebreaker.

Kvitova had made the finals in two of her first three tournaments this year.

Naomi Osaka and Novak Djokovic, the world’s top-ranked players, had night matches Monday with rain in the forecast.