Taylor Fritz is upset about losing to friend Frances Tiafoe at BNP Paribas Open

Frances Tiafoe took a wise approach to his first-round match against fellow American Taylor Fritz on Thursday at the BNP Paribas Open. “You never make the moment as big as it seems. You treat it like another match,” Tiafoe said. “We play in Carson, where we train, all the time. I thought it would be just like that.

“Obviously, it’s Indian Wells and you’re playing on the second-biggest court in tennis, but you just want to stay in between the lines and just go from point to point.”

Tiafoe of College Park, Md., wasn’t intimidated by the event or by playing in 16,100-seat Stadium 1. Tiafoe, the youngest player in the men’s draw here at 18 years and 1 month old— three months younger than Fritz — kept his friend off balance and overcame a second-set lull to prevail, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.

Tiafoe won all three of their meetings in the junior ranks, but this was the first time they faced each other since both turned pro last year. Both got wild-card entries; Fritz is ranked 80th and Tiafoe 177th.

Fritz double-faulted five times and was broken four times by the aggressive Tiafoe. “I definitely wanted to beat him really badly because I’d never beaten him in juniors before,” said Fritz, who’s from Rancho Santa Fe. “It’s been a while and I’ve been doing so well lately and I’ve improved so much I thought this one was my time to take it. I don’t think I played at the level I usually would play.”

He said he was “extremely upset,” and expected to brood for a while. “If I lose to [Novak] Djokovic I think I’d be over it in about 10 minutes. Not even. Maybe two minutes,” Fritz said of the world’s No. 1 player. “But these types of matches, this one definitely stings.”

Tiafoe next will face David Goffin of Belgium, ranked 18th in the world and seeded No. 15 here. “I’ve really got nothing to lose,” Tiafoe said. “I’m going to go there and just have fun.”

Murray backs ban for Sharapova

Andy Murray, ranked No. 2 in the world and seeded second here, said he believes Maria Sharapova should be suspended for testing positive for meldonium, also known by the brand name Mildronate. Sharapova said earlier this week she used the drug for 10 years to treat frequent illnesses, a magnesium deficiency and irregular EKG results. The drug is typically used by heart patients and for shorter courses than Sharapova’s. It was classified a banned drug starting this year.

“If you’re taking performance-enhancing drugs and you fail a drugs test, you have to get suspended,” Murray said.

He also said he researched the substance after hearing of Sharapova’s infraction.

“I read that 55 athletes have failed tests for that substance since Jan. 1, so you don’t expect high-level athletes at the top of many different sports to have heart conditions,” he said.

Etc.

Eugenie Bouchard of Canada, who was No. 5 in the world after her runner-up finish at Wimbledon in 2014 but has since struggled and fallen to No. 42, rallied to defeat qualifier Risa Ozaki of Japan, 2-6, 6-4, 6-2.

helene.elliott@latimes.com

Twitter: @helenenothelen