Spanish World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz beats American Tommy Paul to keep his Sunshine Double quest on track at the Miami Open with USA’s Taylor Fritz lying in wait in the quarterfinals
American Tommy Paul fell to World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets at the Miami Open Tuesday.
Indian Wells champion Alcaraz stayed on course to complete the ‘Sunshine Double’ with the win setting up a quarterfinal with another American Taylor Fritz, who eased past Denmark’s Holger Rune 6-3 6-4 earlier in the day.
Paul was no match for the Spanish teenager’s dynamic game which tamed the 25-year-old American 6-4 6-4 in one hour and 36 minutes.
‘I feel at home here. It is easy to play here in Miami with all the energy I receive every day,’ Alcaraz said. ‘I am enjoying myself and I think that is the key to playing at such a high level every match. I hope to keep going.’
Alcaraz showcased his sensational speed and reflexes to reach a drop shot for love-30 and broke Paul two points later for a 3-2 advantage.
Reigning US Open winner Carlos Alcaraz stayed on course to complete the ‘Sunshine Double’
American Tommy Paul fell to the World No. 1 6-4 6-4 in one hour and 36 minutes
An acrobatic overhead winner gave Paul a break point at 5-4 but Alcaraz recovered, unleashing a perfectly disguised drop shot of his own that Paul could not chase down to claim the first set.
Paul fell behind an early break again in the second set on a missed forehand for 2-1.
Paul, who came from behind to beat Alcaraz in their only previous meeting at last year’s Rogers Cup, then fended off a match point while serving at 5-3.
But there would be no escape from Alcaraz, the top-seeded teenager letting out a mighty roar when Paul’s forehand landed out of bounds to end the contest.
‘The key of that match was that I was playing to attack,’ Alcaraz said. ‘I didn’t let him play his game – attack and go to the net – I did those things first… I played a really complete match.’
Alcaraz is now three wins away from the ‘Sunshine Double,’ something he needs to retain his world number one ranking from Novak Djokovic.
On the women’s side, Elena Rybakina enjoyed a businesslike 6-3 6-0 win to dispatch 25th seed Martina Trevisan to move two wins away from completing the ‘Sunshine Double.’
25-year-old Paul was no match for the Spanish teenager’s dynamic game in Miami
On the women’s side, Elena Rybakina enjoyed a 6-3 6-0 win to dispatch Martina Trevisan
The 10th-seeded Kazakh deployed her clean groundstrokes and feasted on the Italian’s soft second serve in the tight first set.
But it was all Rybakina in the second, the powerful and precise Wimbledon champion pounding an unreturnable serve on match point to notch her 12th consecutive win.
“I would say that, of course, maybe I’m moving not as good as I was moving in Indian Wells but overall I think that I’m trying to keep that level from Indian Wells,” she told reporters after reaching the semi-finals.
“There are a lot of ups-and-downs, but I think overall it’s not bad.”
Rybakina will next face either third-seeded American Jessica Pegula or 27th-seeded Russian Anastasia Potapova, who play their quarter-final later on Tuesday.
