“My attitude is that it always feels better when you’re No.1,” Williams opined. “There’s nothing like when they announce you and they say, ‘The No. 1 player in the world.’ So for me it definitely gives me a little bit more confidence, I think a little bit more pep in your step. It’s just a great feeling.

“I tried to be ready for Indian Wells but my ankle wasn’t ready, so I had to wait another few weeks,” Na said. “I really wanted to be 100 percent ready to come back to the court, because otherwise it would be dangerous. I’ve been really looking forward to coming back. I feel like I had another off-season just now.”

Rafael Nadal looked good, not great, in his hardcourt debut while the American youngsters crashed out.

Rafael Nadal makes his return to hardcourts Saturday at Indian Wells while Roger Federer opens his title defense.

The No. 2-seeded Sharapova looked nearly as dominant as she did in recording two double bagels in the first two rounds, easily bouncing Venus Williams from the event.

“There’s a long way to go between now and the pro level,” Chris Evert says. “At 12 years old she’s pretty much an all-court player; she’s not one-dimensional, which is pretty rare in this day and age. Your normal 12-year-old is five foot tall and it’s tough to demand of them, ‘You have to hit the ball hard, have a great serve and know how to volley.’ It’s really been a quick rise, and once you get success at an early age, that is real encouragement. She got to go to France this year to play in the world 14-year-olds, and these things are little incentives. I know for me, as a junior we drove to Chattanooga, Tennessee, with five kids in the car, and it was a thrill to stay at a Holiday Inn.”

China’s Zheng Jie pulled off perhaps the largest upset of the day — only perhaps, because it was only a matter of time before Top 10er Sam Stosur got tight in front of her home audience. Jie defeated the No. 9-seeded Stosur 6-4, 1-6, 7-5 after Stosur twice served for the match, and double-faulted on match point for good measure.

American women continue their surge during week two of the tennis season, while Bernard Tomic wins and Grigor Dimitrov falls.

The US Open women’s draw lost a Top 10 seed to an American upstart on Wednesday, and an American veteran who dropped out of the tournament due to a frightening diagnosis.

“It’s just a matter of belief within myself, that no matter how well or bad or good I’m playing, or my opponent is playing, I know I can tough it out,” Sharapova said. “No matter what the situation is, I have the belief.”