Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan remain in the hunt for a fifth Miami Open presented by Itau title following a dramatic 6-7(4), 6-4, 11-9 win over Croatians Marin Cilic and Nikola Mektic in the quarter-finals on Wednesday. The veteran brothers, who face countrymen Nicholas Monroe and Jack Sock in the semi-finals, can return to No. 1 in the Emirates ATP Doubles Rankings by lifting the trophy this weekend, otherwise Finland’s Henri Kontinen will claim top position. Cilic/Mektic looked comfortable on serve to lead 5-2, however the Bryan Brothers managed to force a first-set tie-break. The Croatian duo combined well at the net to edge ahead, before Cilic’s retrieval skills earned a commanding set-and-a-break lead. Watch Full Match Replays A backhand...
Fabio Fognini is on a tear at the Miami Open presented by Itaú. The enigmatic Italian’s run continued on Wednesday as he advanced to his second ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final at the expense of Kei Nishikori, beating the second-seeded Japanese star 6-4, 6-2. World No. 40 Fognini notched his first victory in three attempts over Nishikori, scoring his first Top 5 win since defeating then-No. 4 Rafael Nadal in the third round at 2015 Barcelona. It earns him a spot in his first Masters 1000 semi-final since 2013, when he reached the last four in Monte-Carlo (l. to Djokovic). “At the moment, I'm just happy. Of course this is a big, big tournament for me. I’m feeling really...
#NextGenATP star Alexander Zverev knocked out top seed Stan Wawrinka on Tuesday at the Miami Open presented by Itau to advance to his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 quarter-final. The 19-year-old Zverev came back from a set down and ran away with the fourth-round contest, winning 12 of the final 15 games to claim victory 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 in one hour and 44 minutes. “I had to be aggressive. I felt like he was the one controlling all the points all the time, so I had to change that. It worked out well for me. Happy to be in the quarter-finals now. Hopefully I can play as great as I did today,” Zverev said. The German was nearly untouchable...
Four-time finalist Rafael Nadal is now two matches away from again contending for his first title at the Miami Open presented by Itau. The Spaniard advanced to the Miami quarter-finals on Tuesday, advancing past the veteran Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 7-6(4) in what could have been a tricky fourth-round match-up in Key Biscayne. Nadal was unbeatable on his serve though, winning 92 per cent of his first-serve points and never facing a break point in the one-hour and 35-minute contest. Mahut served and volleyed with success, taking 64 per cent of his net points (18/28). Watch Full Match Replays But the 35-year-old Frenchman lost his only break point and was outdone in the second-set tie-break. Nadal smashed an inside-out forehand winner...
Roger Federer stayed perfect at the Miami Open presented by Itau on Tuesday, persevering through a back-and-forth and gritty fourth-round contest against Roberto Bautista Agut 7-6(5), 7-6(4). The Swiss right-hander needed nearly two hours to improve to 6-0 against the Spaniard in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series, and afterward likened his recovery to going clubbing. "I think coming out of a brutal match and then feeling fit like a fiddle in the morning, it's like when you go clubbing," said the 35-year-old Federer. "Same thing. You know, you don't feel the same when you're older. (Laughter.) It's a good example because everybody knows that feeling. Not that I've ever -- you know?" Federer reaches his second consecutive ATP World Tour...
