Tsitsipas advances to last 16 in Miami Open while Rybakina keeps Sunshine Double hopes alive

Greek tennis player Stefanos Tsitsipas secured a place in the fourth round of the Miami Open by beating Cristian Garin 6-3 4-6 6-4. Despite his shoulder injury, Tsitsipas managed to save three out of four break points in the two-hour match. His next opponent will be Karen Khachanov from Russia, whom he has previously beaten in all of their six head-to-head matches.

Meanwhile, Elena Rybakina from Kazakhstan advanced to the quarter-finals by defeating Elise Mertens. With a 6-4 6-3 win, she kept alive her hopes of winning the rare “Sunshine Double” by winning both the Indian Wells and Miami tournaments back-to-back.

Tsitsipas overcomes tough challenge

Despite playing his first match of the Miami Open following a bye and walkover, respectively, in the opening two rounds, Tsitsipas had 12 aces and saved three of four break points in the two-hour match. He is still dealing with an ongoing shoulder issue, but he was able to overcome a tough challenge from Garin.

The match remained on serve until Tsitsipas broke for a 5-3 lead in the opening frame before going on to hold at love to grab the first set without facing a break point. The Greek squandered two break point chances in the opening game of a third set but got the break he would need at 4-4 when Garin double-faulted while at 40-30 in a game the Chilean went on to lose before Tsitsipas served out the match.

Up next for Tsitsipas will be Russian 14th seed Karen Khachanov, who reached the round of 16 with a 6-2 6-4 win over Czech Jiri Lehecka. Tsitsipas has a 6-0 record in head-to-head meetings against Khachanov, with their most recent coming at the Australian Open semi-finals in January where the Greek prevailed in four sets to reach his first Melbourne final.

Rybakina’s impressive win

Rybakina, the 10th seed, came back from a break down to grab the first set against Mertens. She then ramped up the pressure as she went up an early break in the second and never looked back as the Wimbledon champion moved into the quarter-finals with a 6-4 6-3 win.

Mertens took down a pair of seeded players in Daria Kasatkina and Petra Martic en route to the last 16, led 4-3 in the first set, but Rybakina took the next six games stretching into the second frame to grab control. If Rybakina lifts the title in Miami, she would become only the fifth woman to win the Indian Wells and Miami tournaments back-to-back, a feat known as the “Sunshine Double” given the tournaments’ locations in California and Florida.

As the Miami Open progresses, the competition continues to heat up with thrilling matches and surprises in both the men’s and women’s singles. Elena Rybakina’s victory over Elise Mertens has kept her hopes of achieving the Sunshine Double alive, while Martina Trevisan has achieved a career-first by advancing to the quarterfinals of a WTA 1000 event. Third seed Jessica Pegula continues to dominate, having not dropped a set in her first three matches. Argentine Francisco Cerundolo’s victory over fifth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the men’s singles adds another exciting twist to the ongoing tournament.