It was a day of carnage for Australian players at Indian Wells, with Nick Kyrgios, Alex de Minaur and Jordan Thompson all ousted in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open.
The Aussie hopes in the men's singles draw now lie with two qualifiers, with Melbourne Park surprise packets Alexei Popyrin and Alex Bolt the last Australians remaining.
Popyrin and eighth seed John Isner will play each other for the first time in their careers, while Bolt will take on Argentine 32nd seed Guido Pella.
INDIAN WELLS: Men's draw | Women's draw | Barty, Popyrin, Bolt and Gavrilova record wins
There are also two Aussie women remaining, but in the guises of two much more experienced heads in big tournaments.
KYRGIOS OUTPLAYED BY GERMAN VETERAN
Fresh off a superb run to the title at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel, Kyrgios had a golden chance to set up a third-round blockbuster against Novak Djokovic.
However, Philipp Kohlschreiber proved to be the thorn in the Aussie's side, with the German veteran wiping out the 31st seed 6-4 6-4 in one hour and 14 minutes.
It'll be tough going from here for Kohlschreiber, with Djokovic leading 8-1 in their head-to-head.
DE MINAUR DOWNED BY LOCAL QUALIFIER
Heading to Indian Wells boasting a career-high ranking of 24th in the world, Alex de Minaur was undone by a player 193 ranking places lower than him.
World No. 217 Marcos Giron didn't have it all his own way, losing the first set to the Aussie 6-1.
However, the American qualifier sealed just his third tour level victory in the 1-6 6-4 6-2 result, and will play 13th seed Milos Raonic next.
.@marcos_giron93 rallies to beat Alex de Minaur 1-6, 6-4, 6-2. 👀
— ATP Tour (@ATP_Tour) March 9, 2019
What impressed you most about the California native? 🌴 🇺🇸 #BNPPO19 pic.twitter.com/uPtQnxFJWM
THOMPSON NEARLY A MATCH FOR THIEM
Thompson didn’t quite have enough to land the killer blows against Thiem, but during his 6-4 7-5 loss, a wild hold of serve typified how he wouldn't go down with a whimper.
Seventh-seeded Thiem cruised in the first set, but Thompson held a 5-4 lead in the second, only to let it slip.
One game went for 20 minutes - 34 points in total - that included a whopping 13 deuces. Thompson won the game despite saving four break points, but the Austrian was too clinical when it mattered.
Thiem will now take on Frenchman Gilles Simon in the third round.
POTENTIAL ALL-AUSSIE FOURTH ROUND LOOMS
In the women's draw, 12th seed Ash Barty is eyeing off a fourth round, but standing in her away is American wildcard Jennifer Brady.
Should either player progress, their fourth round opponent will emerge from the matchup between sixth seed Elina Svitolina and Aussie dasher Daria Gavrilova.
An all-Australian encounter looms should Barty and Gavrilova progress, with Barty leading the head-to-head with her compatriot 2-1.
It'll be a tough ask for Gavrilova to even get to such a match - Svitolina leads their head-to-head 5-2, notably winning their Indian Wells clash two years ago.
