Taylor Fritz's girlfriend Morgan Riddle celebrates as defending champion enters quarterfinals at Indian Wells 2023

Taylor Fritz's Indian Wells title defense is alive with the American No. 1 looking in more lethal form on the court with each passing match. As the fourth seed stormed into the quarterfinals with a 6-4, 6-3 win against Marton Fucsovics on Tuesday, his girlfriend, Morgan Riddle, who is a constant presence with him on tour, was thrilled to bits.

Fritz, who hit a reverse serve in the fourth-round match that left his opponent stunned, awaits the winner of the match between Jannik Sinner and Stan Wawrinka in the last-eight.

For now, he will probably cherish another big win as he moves a step closer to his goal this week of becoming the first American to win back-to-back Indian Wells titles since Michael Chang in 1996-97. His girlfriend certainly cherished his latest win, reacting to the same on social media.

Taylor Fritz's girlfriend Morgan Riddle celebrates his Indian Wells fourth-round win.

Earlier this week, Fritz beat Ben Shelton 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the first round in what has been his toughest match so far en route to his title defense. He then beat Argentinian Sebastian Baez in the second round.

The World No. 5 came to Indian Wells after a scary situation at the end of his Mexican Open campaign, where he threw up on the court during his semifinal loss to Tommy Paul. It later came to light that Fritz spent the night in the hospital due to severe dehydration and full body cramping.

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"I believe in repeating winning routines" - Taylor Fritz opens up about his superstitions during tournaments

Taylor Fritz competes at Indian Wells 2023.

Taylor Fritz also revealed whether he has any superstitions during tournaments like many other players. The 25-year-old prefers not to break 'winning routines.' He stressed that he does not believe that following the same routine each day during tournaments is a superstition, but only a continuation of doing what works for him, be it repeating meals or the like.

"I believe in repeating winning routines. That's the only superstition that I have and I don't think that's necessarily a superstition," Fritz said in an interview with Tennis Channel after Tuesday's match.

"If something is working for you, you should continue doing it. Like meals and whatever routine is working for you."

Fritz will be even more keen on repeating his daily routine this week at Indian Wells, given all that is at stake for him. Not only can he win another Masters 1000 title, that too at his home tournament, the World No. 5 would also suffer a fall in the rankings closer to 10th place if he is unable to defend his title.