Alexandrova posts upset with victory over Pegula to enter Miami semifinal

FLORIDA — No.14 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova continued her impressive form at the Miami Open, making the semifinals with a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 upset win over No.5 seed American Jessica Pegula at the WTA 1000 event.

The 29-year-old Alexandrova also matched her career-best WTA 1000 performance with the come-from-behind win; she previously made the semifinals at WTA 1000 Madrid in 2022.

Pegula was nearly perfect behind her first delivery in the opening set, where she won 13 of her 14 first-serve points (92 percent). However, Alexandrova’s power game clicked into gear in the second set, where she had 15 winners to Pegula’s four, WTA reports.

In the decisive third set, Alexandrova double-faulted an early break away, putting the set at a 3-3 deadlock. However, the 29-year-old Russian took another opportunity two games later, moving ahead with aggressive returns and finishes in the forecourt to break Pegula for 5-4. She then converted her second match point to seal the comeback victory.

Alexandrova, the last player into the final four, will face the last remaining American Danielle Collins on Friday.

Collins reached the semifinals with a straight-sets win over Caroline Garcia earlier on the day. To reach her first final at this level, she’ll have to defeat No.14 Alexandrova in Thursday’s semifinals.

Medvedev beats Jarry to set Sinner semifinal in Miami

FLORIDA — Daniil Medvedev turned back a late charge by Chilean Nicolas Jarry en route to a 6-2, 7-6(7) win, set an Australian Open final rematch with Jannik Sinner in the semifinals of the Miami Open.

Medvedev made just three unforced errors to Jarry’s 14 in the first set alone before Jarry worked his way back into the match and came within two points of stealing the second set in a rollercoaster tie-break.

But Medvedev held his nerve to extend his winning streak at Hard Rock Stadium to nine matches as he moved to within two wins of successfully defending a title for the first time in his career, ATP reports.

Jarry would have returned to the Top 20 and become the first Chilean to reach the Miami semi-finals since Fernando Gonzalez in 2004 had he beaten Medvedev.

Earlier on the day, Sinner moved into his fourth semi-final of the year and captured a season-leading 20th match win at the Miami Open.

The Italian produced a squeaky-clean performance to oust Czech player Tomas Machac 6-4, 6-2 in 91 minutes.

Sinner, who has twice reached the final in Miami (2021, 2023), is into the last four for a third time.

Aiming for his second ATP Masters 1000 crown, the No. 3 player in the ATP Rankings boasts a 20-1 season record with titles at the Australian Open and in Rotterdam.

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