Top five upsets at Miami Open 2024

Published at :March 31, 2024 at 5:11 PM

Modified at :April 6, 2024 at 9:26 PM

(Courtesy : Sun Sentinel)

Top seeds Swiatek & Alcaraz crash out early, Dimitrov & Alexandrova stun the field.

The recently-concluded Miami Open 2024 had more than its fair share of upsets. At the event’s conclusion, players tipped to win fell by the wayside, while underdogs rose to take their place. Well-placed favourites Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz made early exits, taken out by players usually populating the sidelines. The casualties included hometown favourite Coco Gauff.

Let’s take a closer look at the five surprising results that left the rankings in a state of flux throughout the 2024 Miami Open:

Fabian Marozsan defeats Holger Rune

Marozsan has built a reputation for taking out players without a care for their top billing. He had taken out Alcaraz in Rome last season when ranked 135 and followed it up with wins over Alex de Minaur and Casper Ruud in Shanghai when he was ranked World No. 91.

In the Miami Open second round, it was Holger Rune’s turn to taste defeat. The World No. 57 from Hungary knocked out Rune 6-1, 6-1 in just 59 minutes. His win against Rune, ranked 50 places above him, took his record to 3-1 against top 10 players. Marozsan went on to reach the Round of 16, but could go no further as he lost to Carlos Alcaraz for a second time this season.

Caroline Garcia defeats Coco Gauff

Frenchwoman Caroline Garcia eased into the first Miami Open quarterfinals of her career with a 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 upset of local star Coco Gauff in their Round of 16 match. Garcia completed the formalities against Florida resident Gauff in 1 hour and 43 minutes of play. Gauff’s run of bad luck at her home tournament continued, as she has not made it past the fourth round in her five appearances in Miami.

Garcia leads Gauff 3-2 in their head-to-head, having reeled off three straight wins against the World No. 3. This was their first meeting since 2022. The American last got the better of Garcia in 2022 in Doha.

Anhelina Kalinina defeats Aryna Sabalenka

Anhelina Kalinina took credit for Aryna Sabalenka’s defeat in the Miami Open third round 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 in just over two hours. The Ukrainian came out on top in their first career head-to-head. An off-colour Sabalenka sent down 42 winners Kalinina’s way, but also made 55 unforced errors.

The Belarusian is another high-profile player who hasn’t had much luck in the “Sunshine State.” Her best results in Miami have been quarterfinal appearances in 2021 and 2023. Sabalenka’s Ukrainian rival went one step further before losing to Kazakh Yulia Putintseva in straight sets.

Saturday was a day of upsets that saw four of the top 10 seeds, including Sabalenka, make early exits from the tournament.

Grigor Dimitrov defeats Carlos Alcaraz

Dimitrov’s ouster of top seed Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals was the biggest upset of the men’s draw. The Bulgarian dashed Alcaraz’s hopes of taking the “Sunshine Double” by handing the Spaniard a 6-2, 6-4 defeat. The 32-year-old Dimitrov produced 24 winners en route to his second consecutive win over the World No. 2. His win over Alcaraz gave him the 40th top 10 win of his career.

Dimitrov wasn’t done yet, going on to defeat Alexander Zverev for his first-ever final in Miami. The result also came with the No. 9 position for Dimitrov in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and a bump up to sixth place in the race to Turin.

Ekaterina Alexandrova defeats Iga Swiatek

Three days before the exit of men’s top seed Carlos Alcaraz, the same fate befell World No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the women’s draw. Ekaterina Alexandrova bettered Swiatek 6-4, 6-2, ending the Pole’s ambitions of a second “Sunshine Double.”

Swiatek had completed a one-two win at Indian Wells and Miami in 2022. The Russian’s first career win over a World No. 1 propelled her into her first semifinal at Miami. Alexandrova’s 31 winners to Swiatek’s 11 helped give her a second win over the Pole in five meetings, reversing the Doha result earlier this year.

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