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Top seeds Barty, Medevdev march on at Miami Open

  • Matt Trollope

World No.1 Ash Barty returned to the Miami Open semifinals with a hard-fought victory over Aryna Sabalenka on Tuesday.

The defending champion, who won the most recent edition of the tournament in 2019, beat the Belarusian 6-4 6-7(5) 6-3 to set up a semifinal meeting against Elina Svitolina, who dismissed Anastasija Sevastova 6-3 6-2 in an evening match.

Also advancing on Tuesday was Daniil Medvedev, who took his place in the quarterfinals following a 6-4 6-3 win over American Frances Tiafoe. 

Medvedev was joined in the last eight by Jannik Sinner, the Italian teenager who dropped just five games against Finn Emil Ruusuvuori.

Another young gun, 20-year-old American Sebastian Korda, scored his first career victory over a top-10 opponent with an upset 6-3 4-6 7-5 triumph over fifth seed Diego Schwartzman.

Korda will next face fourth seed Andrey Rublev, who dispatched Marin Cilic 6-4 6-4 before No.2 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas ended Lorenzo Sonego's campaign with a 6-2 7-6(2) in the last match of the evening in Miami.

Sinner will next face Alexander Bublik – a three-set winner over Taylor Fritz – while Roberto Bautista Agut and Hubert Hurkacz also sealed their spots in the quarterfinals.

Barty back in semifinals

Since saving a match point in her opening-round encounter, Barty has looked far sharper in Miami. 

She had only scored two wins over Sabalenka in five career meetings but levelled their head-to-head series at 3-3 after saving all seven break points she faced.

The victory boosts her win-loss record in 2012 to an impressive 12-2 and improves her chances of holding off Naomi Osaka in the battle for the No.1 ranking, which Barty has held uninterrupted since September 2019.

“I don't save a break point in the first set, it probably goes the other way, and there is very, very fine margins in that match today,” Barty said of the Sabalenka win.

“I feel like these are very familiar conditions for me. With the heat and humidity, it's very similar to Brisbane where I grew up and what I was born and bred and trained in my whole life.

“I enjoy these courts. I enjoy the balls and how they are responsive to spin. A lot of different elements. There are a lot of places around the world that I enjoy playing, and here is one of them.”

Osaka will face Maria Sakkari first up on Wednesday for a possible semifinal shot at Bianca Andreescu, who takes on the in-form Sara Sorribes Tormo.

On the men’s side, Medvedev has built an even more sparkling win-loss record than Barty this season, winning 17 of his 19 matches.

His 92-minute victory over Tiafoe was his seventh straight, with the AO 2021 finalist claiming the ATP title in Marseille before arriving in Miami as the top seed.

Medvedev next takes on Bautista Agut, who ended the run of 2018 Miami Open champion John Isner in a third-set tiebreak, saving a match point along the way.

"The thing is tomorrow I'm definitely going to be feeling better than today. I was feeling quite good on the court (against Tiafoe) and that's important," Medvedev said.

"I still have time to recover well, to sleep well, and tomorrow I'm going to be definitely fresher than from the cramps of the other day, which today before the match was not easy. I had to focus mentally, to just say to myself, you know, I can make it. My legs can make it. I know I'm capable, but it was not easy.

"Tomorrow (against Bautista Agut) is going to be easier in terms of physical."

Also advancing in a final-set tiebreak, over Milos Raonic, was Hurkacz, the 26th seed from Poland who backed up his upset third-round win over Denis Shapovalov.

Hurkacz will next play Tsitsipas in an attempt to reach his first ever ATP Masters semifinal.

Sinner, meanwhile, advanced to his third consecutive ATP quarterfinal after reaching the same stage in Marseille and Dubai.

The 19-year-old, who won the Great Ocean Road Open at Melbourne Park earlier this season, is now 12-4 in 2021 and takes a winning 1-0 head-to-head record into his match against Bublik, who advanced to the last eight with a 6-7(5) 6-3 6-4 defeat of Fritz.