Indian qualifier Prajnesh Gunneswaran achieved the biggest win of his career when he knocked world No. 18 Nikoloz Basilashvili out of the Indian Wells ATP Masters event.

The Indian left-hander secured a 6-4, 6(6)-7, 7-6(4) victory over the Georgian in two hours 32 minutes. The world No. 97 needed only a single break of serve to take the lead in the match. Prajnesh broke Basilashvili's serve in the fifth game and then held his serve to take the opening set in 31 minutes.

The second and third sets were tightly contested and went into tie-breaks with Basilashvili emerging victorious in the former and Prajnesh in the latter to seal a spot in the next round.

“It was definitely a huge match. I think I played well better than I did in the previous round. I had to step up because I was playing a really good player, someone who has been in form and is ranked in the top 20,” Prajnesh said. “He is an aggressive tennis player, hits the ball big and I didn't have too much room to just put the ball in and hope for the best. I came out and was firing and stayed with the right intensity. I think this is one of my best matches mentally and I'm showing myself that I can be at this level.”

Prajnesh will face world number 89 Croatia's Ivo Karlovic in the third round. He had earlier got the better of fancied Frenchman Benoit Paire in the first stage.

Talking about the game, Prajnesh said he regretted not finishing the match in the second game itself. “I should have finished it in 5-3 at the third set and I also had a lot of opportunities in the second set. I think I needed to be a little bit more better in those moments.

“In the tie-break he stepped up, there was a shift in the momentum and he took the second set. Then I had to reset myself and I had to fight for the set, It wasn't easy it was close, I had to find a way to get back my composure and stay tough mentally to take the third set and the match which was a big deal for me,” he said.

World No.1 Novak Djokovic picked up steam during his second-round match against American Bjorn Fratangelo under the lights on the stadium court as he goes in search of his 74th ATP title.

Djokovic sprinted over to the stands to shake hands with his idol, 14-time Grand Slam champion Pete Sampras, immediately after the 7-6 (5), 6-2 win.

“I was a bit nervous, I don’t get to see Pete that often,” the 31-year-old Serb told reporters. “It was a thrill to see someone that I looked up to when I was a kid.”

A sharp Philipp Kohlschreiber broke Nick Kyrgios twice en route to a 6-4, 6-4 win that took just over an hour. Kohlschreiber deployed a wide variety of shots to keep the 23-year-old Australian guessing and managed to save all five of Kyrgios' break-point opportunities.

In doubles, Rohan Bopanna advanced to the second round with partner Denis Shapovalov after stunning second-seeded pair of Scotland's Jamie Murray and Brazil's Bruno Soares 6-4, 6-4 in their opening match.