Sabalenka Sound, Krejcikova KOs Keys At Miami Masters; Full Sweet 16 Monday

by Staff | March 27th, 2023, 12:16 am
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There was little drama Sunday in the women’s draw at the Miami Masters for the conclusion of the third round as all eight matches finished in straight sets.

Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka rolled past fellow 24-year-old Marie Bouzkova 6-1, 6-2. The Belarussian lost just 10 total points on serve and never faced a break point.

Sabalenka will now face Barbora Krejcikova tomorrow night. The Czech former French champion eliminated American Madison Keys 7-6(7-4), 6-3.


The 18th-seeded Ekaterina Alexandrova pulled the minor upset of the day knocking out No. 9 Belinda Bencic in straight sets 7-6(10-8), 6-3. The Swiss gave away seven double faults, two of which led to breaks.

Elsewherey, 15th-seeded Petra Kvitova got by No. 22 seed Donna Vekic 6-4, 7-6(7-3). Lefty Marketa Vondrousova blew out former finalist Karolina Pliskova 6-1, 6-2. Bianca Andreescu, also a runner-up got the better of American Sofia Kenin 6-4, 6-4. Qualifier Varvara Gracheva continued her run dominating dominated Magdalena Frech 6-1, 6-2 and Romania’s Sorana Cirstea ousted Karolina Muchova 7-5, 6-1.

“Last time I played here in 2021, I did not enjoy myself,” Andreescu told the crowd. “I did not feel that I deserved to be in that final. But this year, I feel like a totally different person, and I definitely feel I deserve to be here right now.”

Tomorrow’s line-up boasts all eight fourth round matches led by Sabalenka-Krejcikova. Sabalenka is ahead of Krejcikova 3-1 in their tour-level clashes but Krejcikova took their in Dubai last month before Sabalenka got revenge at Indian Wells.

“I think if you give her some time she can put the ball wherever she wants to,” Sabalenka said. “It’s tough. So you have to put a lot of pressure on her. You have to be really aggressive on court and not give her too much time and make her really work for it. She’s a great player and it’s always tough battles against her.”

Said Krejcikova, “She’s on top of the game right now. Her tennis is really interesting and I like to play against her because her shots are one of the fastest ones and the same with her serve and return. She’s very aggressive.

“It’s a really nice opportunity to play because I feel that my tennis is also improving and I feel like I have a big shot, a big chance against her.”

No. 3 Jessica Pegula squares off against No. 20 Magda Linette in a first-time tour-level meeting

No. 10 Elena Rybakina collides with Elise Mertens, No. 15 Petra Kvitova will battle Varvara Gracheva, No. 18 Ekaterina Alexandrova will challenge Bianca Andreescu, No. 23 Qinwen Zheng locks up with No. 27 Anastasia Potapova, No. 24 Jelena Ostapenko will challenge No. 25 Martina Trevisan and Marketa Vondrousova faces Sorana Cirstea.


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