Taylor-made win for Carlos Alcaraz, Elena Rybakina takes Jessica Pegula down

Miami, March 31

Top seed Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev booked their spots in the Miami Open semifinals with wins over American opponents on Thursday, while Elena Rybakina saw off world No. 3 Jessica Pegula to reach the women’s final.

Taylor Fritz showed great fight but was unable to match Alcaraz’s level, the defending champion taking control with an instant break of serve in each set on the way to a 6-4 6-2 win.

In a high-quality clash between two players who reached the quarterfinal without dropping a set, world No. 1 Alcaraz never trailed and frustrated ninth seed Fritz with a potent mix of power, sublime shot-making and relentless hustle.

“A little bit of nerves at the beginning of the match, it was new for me playing against him, never played him before,” Alcaraz, 19, said after the match that was originally scheduled for Wednesday but postponed due to rain.

If Alcaraz wins the title he would become the eighth man to win the Indian Wells and Miami tournaments back-to-back, a feat known as the ‘Sunshine Double’ given their locations in California and Florida.

Alcaraz next plays 10th seed Jannik Sinner, whom the Spaniard beat in the Indian Wells semifinals to improve to 3-2 in head-to-head meetings with the Italian.

Medvedev ended the dream run of American qualifier Christopher Eubanks with an impressive 6-3 7-5 victory in a rain-interrupted match to reach the semifinals of the tournament for the first time. Medvedev will next face fellow Karen Khachanov, who advanced with a 6-3 6-2 win over Francisco Cerundolo.

Wimbledon champion Rybakina, who is seeking to become the fifth woman to back up the Indian Wells title with the Miami crown, came through two rollercoaster sets and a couple of rain delays to beat Pegula 7-6(3) 6-4 in their semifinal. — Reuters

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