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Shapovalov reaches third round at Crandon Park on his debut

Miami has always been a special place for Alexander Zverev. It was the site of his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 win in 2015 as well as his first Top 10 win at the elite level last year, when he defeated top-seeded Stan Wawrinka en route to the quarter-finals.

The German is off to another good start at the Miami Open presented by Itau, outlasting recent Sydney champion Daniil Medvedev 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(5) in a second-round thriller on Saturday.

"It was not an easy match, but if you look at my history, the tournaments I do well in have very tough opening rounds," said Zverev. "I didn't play my best, but it's very important to find ways to win matches like that.

"He's one of the best servers on tour. On his serve, anything can happen. I was just happy to take my chances in the tie-break and capitalise at 6/5 to win the match. It was very important for me and I hope to keeping winning."

The World No. 5, who is now 9-4 in 2018, is looking to kickstart his season a year after earning five titles and winning 55 matches. By this time in 2017, the eventual Nitto ATP Finals qualifier had pushed Rafael Nadal to five sets at the Australian Open and won his second ATP World Tour title at Montpellier.

The victory against Medvedev comes in Zverev's 200th tour-level match, and the 20-year-old is now 126-74. Perhaps his ninth consecutive deciding-set tie-break victory at the tour-level (9-1) will give the third seed the momentum he needs to go on a deep run in Miami once again. He will play No. 28 seed David Ferrer in the third round after the veteran Spaniard ousted Russian Evgeny Dosnkoy 6-2, 6-2.

Ferrer has made at least the quarter-finals in Miami six times, including an appearance in the 2013 final (l. to Murray). The 35-year-old leads the pair's FedEx ATP Head2Head 2-1, but Zverev earned his lone victory in the series last month in Rotterdam.

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A year ago, another rising star, #NextGenATP Canadian Denis Shapovalov, was playing an ATP Challenger Tour event in Guadalajara, Mexico. He had played just one tour-level match all year: a loss in Marseille against World No. 120 Julien Benneteau. The left-hander was No. 194 in the ATP Rankings.

What a difference a year has made for the teenager. Shapovalov ousted No. 24 seed Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 7-5 to advance to the third round on his Miami debut, making it this far at a Masters 1000 event for the second time. The 2017 Emirates ATP Star of Tomorrow now has 10 tour-level victories on the season, a mark he did not hit until September last season.

It appeared for a moment that Shapovalov was experiencing déjà vu. The 18-year-old let slip a 5-1 lead in the third set of his first-round match against Viktor Troicki before battling through a deciding tie-break. Shapovalov led by a break twice after breezing through a 24-minute opening set against Dzumhur, but could not hold that lead. But the 2017 Next Gen ATP Finals qualifier broke for the fifth time at 5-5 before serving out the victory.

Shapovalov will next face No. 11 seed Sam Querrey after the American stalwart defeated Radu Albot 7-6(4), 6-1 in 69 minutes. Making his 13th tournament appearance, Querrey enjoyed his best result at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event in 2013, when he reached the fourth round.

Did You Know?
Zverev's victory over Medvedev comes in his 200th tour-level match. He has won six ATP World Tour titles and reached a career-best No. 3 in the ATP Rankings.

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Raonic to play Schwartzman for fourth-round berth
If there’s anyone who knows how to make a comeback, it’s Juan Martin del Potro.

Del Potro has been on the receiving end of multiple surgeries, including procedures on both wrists, which have ultimately put unwanted delays on his career. Each time though, the Argentine has been able to make the rebound and assert himself back to the upper echelons of the game.

On Sunday at the Miami Open presented by Itau, he plays a player looking to do the same.

View FedEx ATP Head2Head for the following matches from the 2018 Miami Open presented by Itaú & vote for who you think will win!
Del Potro vs Nishikori | Schwartzman vs Raonic | Cilic vs Pospisil


In February, Kei Nishikori made his return from a five-month wrist injury layoff at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Newport Beach. Although he would lose in his first match, he won the RBC Tennis Championships of Dallas the following week, slowly working his way back to the world-beating form that has seen him near the top of the ATP Rankings for several seasons now.

No. 5 seed Del Potro and Nishikori, seeded 26th, will face off for the first time since the Citi Open in Washington last season, which saw the Japanese emerge victorious in two sets in the third round. However, their other 2017 meeting went the way of Del Potro, in the third round of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 in Rome. Overall, Del Potro leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head 5-2.

“It could be a very difficult match for me. Kei has a very good two-handed backhand and good returns. And he's playing well,” said last week’s BNP Paribas Open champion after his three-set victory over Robin Haase in his opening match. “He feels 100 per cent, free of pain on his wrist. And he's a dangerous guy on Tour. I mean, if he has a good day, he can beat all of the other players. I must play even better than tonight."


The match will pit the might of the Del Potro forehand against the precision of the Nishikori backhand, two of the most electric shots on the ATP World Tour. While history has shown that the Argentine has been able to hit through Nishikori more than the Japenese has been able to outlast Del Potro from behind the baseline, their combined experience in big-match moments is sure to yield a fascinating contest on Crandon Park’s Stadium court.

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Later in the day, No. 3 seed and 2017 Nitto ATP Finals champion Grigor Dimitrov squares off against Frenchman Jeremy Chardy for a spot in the fourth round.

The two haven’t faced each other since 2016, but if their previous encounters are anything to go by, their third-round affair could be one two watch. Dimitrov owns their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 3-1, but each of their past three matches has gone the distance, including a decisive 10-8 third-set tie-break in Brisbane three years ago.

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In a rematch of their Australian Open first-round battle, No. 2 seed Marin Cilic and Canadian Vasek Pospisil will take to the Grandstand court for a place in the fourth round.

Cilic has put together a successful 2018 season so far, and will be looking to hoist his second ATP World Tour Masters 1000 trophy after claiming his first in Cincinnati back in 2016. Pospisil, who himself has posted a successful string of results on the ATP Challenger Tour, brings an 0-2 FedEx ATP Head2Head record into Sunday’s match with Cilic, but will attempt to use his versatile game and prowess at the net to push the World No. 3 a few steps further than their tight four-setter in Melbourne earlier this season.

Former World No. 3 Milos Raonic and No. 13 seed Diego Schwartzman close out play at Crandon Park in an exciting third round clash of styles – and heights. Although they have met only once before with Raonic, then ranked at No.3 in the ATP Rankings, earning the win last year in Brisbane, the tides – and rankings – have taken a noteworthy turn since. Battling a variety of injuries, the Canadian’s ranking has tumbled; however, the eight-time tour-level titlist appears to be rounding back into form following a semi-final appearance at the BNP Paribas Open last week.

Schwartzman finds himself at a career-high of No. 16 in the ATP Rankings after posting strong results in 2018, including his first ATP World Tour 500 title at the Rio Open presented by Claro. The diminutive Argentine will have to muster his best counterpunching and passing shots if he’s to notch his first win over the 6’5” Canadian, who will be attacking the net behind his cannon of a service delivery.