Gael Monfils and Arthur Fils sail through, Stan Wawrinka crashes out at Indian Wells

Gael Monfils displayed an exceptional level of tennis to dominate Australian Max Purcell with a resounding 6-1, 6-2 victory, securing his place in the second round of the Indian Wells tournament on Thursday.

However, the performance of three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka (38) was far from faultless, as he suffered a defeat to Czech player Tomas Machac.

Gael Monfils, a Frenchman, served 10 aces and showcased the type of innovative shotmaking that has won over tennis fans in the California desert for years. He basked in the applause on a sunny center court after securing a dominant victory.

His fellow countryman, Arthur Fils, who progressed with a straight sets win over Nuno Borges, described Monfils as an inspiration.

"I'm not sure how he managed that because we were discussing before the match how Purcell is a tough opponent," Fils informed the reporters.

"Then I took a nap and woke up to see the score at 6-1, 5-2? I believe everyone on the tour wishes to witness him play for many more years.

"It would be a great experience to partner with him in doubles someday."

Monfils is set to face the eighth seed, Hubert Hurkacz of Poland, in the second round, while Fils will go up against Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who is seeded 23rd.

Earlier, Wawrinka was defeated 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-2 by Machac as the Swiss player continued to struggle with his recent form.

Wawrinka, who achieved a career-high ranking of world number three a decade ago, couldn't match the Czech player's performance in the final set, with his trademark one-handed backhand going wide on match point.

Wawrinka suffered early exits in this year's Australian Open, the second round of the Argentina Open, and the first round of the Rio Open before arriving in the California desert, where he was a finalist in 2017.

Machac is scheduled to play against French 21st seed Adrian Mannarino in the second round on Saturday.

Other players like Croatian Borna Coric, Russian Roman Safiullin, China's Shang Juncheng, and American teenager Alex Michelsen also advanced to the second round on Thursday before the play was suspended for the second consecutive day due to rain.