Quarter-final action at the Miami Open presented by Itau continues Thursday, when two scheduled matches along with the postponed Carlos Alcaraz-Taylor Fritz clash are on the card.

Daniil Medvedev is one of the most in-form players on Tour, but the fourth seed will have to end the dream run of home favourite Christopher Eubanks in Florida if he wants to reach his fifth consecutive ATP Tour semi-final. Meanwhile Karen Khachanov looks to back up his fourth-round victory against Stefanos Tsitsipas when he faces 2022 semi-finalist Francisco Cerundolo.

ATPTour.com breaks down Thursday’s quarter-final action in southern Florida.

View Singles Draw | View Doubles Draw | View Schedule

[4] Daniil Medvedev vs. [Q] Christopher Eubanks (USA)

Faced with a post-midnight start to his fourth-round match against Quentin Halys due to rain, Daniil Medvedev was clinical in claiming a straight-sets victory against the Frenchman in the early hours of Wednesday morning. The fourth seed will hope for more of the same on Thursday when he takes on Eubanks, the surprise package of the 2023 Miami Open presented by Itau.

The American qualifier has enjoyed an emotional run to his maiden ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final, even shedding tears after breaking the Top 100 of the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings for the first time with his third-round triumph against Gregoire Barrere. Since edging Lukas Klein in a deciding-set tie-break in the final round of qualifying, Eubanks has dropped just one set in four main-draw matches.

Taking on the 18-time tour-level titlist Medvedev promises to be his toughest challenge yet, however. The red-hot World No. 5 has won 21 of his past 22 matches, with his relentless retrieving from the baseline the dominant feature of his game as he lifted trophies in Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai and reached the championship match in Indian Wells.

The move to the faster conditions of Miami appears to have boosted the four-time Masters 1000 champion’s ability to hit through opponents. Medvedev has struck 45 winners and dropped just nine games across his two matches in Florida so far.

Locked in 🔒@DaniilMedwed overpowers Quentin Halys to secure the victory 6-4 6-2 🙌@MiamiOpen | #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/poWOHDeypx

— ATP Tour (@atptour) March 29, 2023

The outcome of his first ATP Head2Head meeting with Eubanks may depend on the 6’7” American’s ability to pressure Medvedev with precise serving, although the fourth seed will hope his renowned deep return position can help nullify his opponent’s biggest weapon. Another key for Eubanks will be keeping calm in the biggest match of his career to date.

The 26-year-old’s fourth-round win against Adrian Mannarino marked the first time he has won four consecutive tour-level matches. Yet Eubanks says he is feeling more and more confident every time he steps on court at Hard Rock Stadium.

“The [nerves] are less,” he said after downing Mannarino. “I went out there today feeling, ‘Let’s just go out there and play tennis, let’s go out here and have fun’. This week has already been a dream come true… I’m more than happy to live with the results as long as I can go out and try to execute as well as I can, and really have no regrets about how I played.”

[14] Karen Khachanov vs. [25] Francisco Cerundolo (ARG)

Khachanov is becoming accustomed to competing in the latter stages of the biggest events on Tour. Having reached back-to-back Grand Slam semi-finals at the 2022 US Open and January’s Australian Open, the 26-year-old marched past second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas on Tuesday to secure his first ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final appearance since Montreal in 2019.

The four-time tour-level titlist has rediscovered his early-season form quickly considering he was forced to take some time off due to physical issues in the wake of his Melbourne run. Khachanov will hope to maintain that momentum on Thursday in his second ATP Head2Head meeting with the No. 31-ranked Cerundolo.

“After the Australian Open, I had some issue with an injury,” said Khachanov, whose straight-sets win against Tsitsipas snapped his 23-match losing-streak against Top 10 opponents. “I came back in Dubai without having played many matches and I’m just happy to continue that level. I just want to continue that way, enjoy the process, and enjoy the journey. It continues.”

Khachanov’s ratio of 25 winners to nine unforced errors against Tsitsipas certainly suggests he is a man high on confidence, and the World No. 16 will likely need to reproduce that form against Cerundolo in a meeting between two players who excel from the baseline. Khachanov needed three sets to claim victory in the pair’s only previous tour-level meeting last year in Montreal, and he will be wary of an opponent who boasts a stellar history at Hard Rock Stadium.

Cerundolo’s fourth-round win against Lorenzo Sonego improved his record in Miami to 9-1. He defeated Gael Monfils and Frances Tiafoe en route to the semi-finals on event debut in 2022, and the Argentine was ruthless in dispatching fifth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in this year’s third round.

In Auger-Aliassime and Sonego, Cerundolo defeated opponents renowned for stepping into court to strike winners at every opportunity. In contast, Cerundolo can expect Khachanov to settle into extended rallies to offer a stern test of the Argentine’s physical mettle. Can the 24-year-old respond with another dose of Miami magic?

Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin didn’t need to wait long to avenge their semi-final loss to last year’s World No. 1 doubles pair Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski in Indian Wells. On Wednesday in Miami the duo rallied from a set down to upset the Miami top seeds 4-6, 7-6(5), 10-5 to reach their second consecutive ATP Masters 1000 semi-final.

The Mexican-French pairing will next meet the winner of Nathaniel Lammons/Jackson Withrow and Lloyd Glasspool/Harri Heliovaara, who were locked at 3/4 on serve in a match tie-break when rain halted play for the evening.

In the only other completed doubles result Wednesday, German Kevin Krawietz and Frenchman Fabrice Martin defeated American singles stars Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton 6-3, 7-5 to advance to the semi-finals. They next will play American Austin Krajicek and Frenchman Nicolas Mahut.

Carlos Alcaraz’s hunt for the ‘Sunshine Double’ has ironically been put on hold because of rain.

The World No. 1, who must successfully defend his debut ATP Masters 1000 title in Miami this week to remain atop the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, had his Wednesday night quarter-final clash with Taylor Fritz postponed due to rain.

Alcaraz and Fritz will now do battle Thursday, alongside two other quarter-finals already scheduled for tomorrow: Daniil Medvedev vs. Christopher Eubanks and former Miami semi-finalist Francisco Cerundolo vs. Karen Khachanov.

Alcaraz, who triumphed at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells earlier this month, has a 17-1 record in 2023.

ORDER OF PLAY – THURSDAY, MARCH 30, 2023
STADIUM start 1:00 pm
ATP – [Q] C. Eubanks (USA) vs [4] D. Medvedev 

Not Before 3:00 PM
WTA – [18] E. Alexandrova vs [15] P. Kvitova (CZE)

Not Before 7:00 pm
ATP – [1] C. Alcaraz (ESP) vs [9] T. Fritz (USA) 

Not Before 8:30 pm
WTA – [10] E. Rybakina (KAZ) vs [3] J. Pegula (USA)

GRANDSTAND start 2:30 pm
Quarterfinals – ATP – N. Lammons (USA) / J. Withrow (USA) vs [5] L. Glasspool (GBR) / H. Heliovaara (FIN) 76(3) 36 3-4

Not Before 3:00 pm
Quarterfinals – ATP – [25] F. Cerundolo (ARG) vs [14] K. Khachanov 

Not Before 5:00 pm
Semifinals – ATP – S. Gonzalez (MEX) / E. Roger-Vasselin (FRA) vs N. Lammons (USA) / J. Withrow (USA) or [5] L. Glasspool (GBR) / H. Heliovaara (FIN) 
Semifinals – ATP – A. Krajicek (USA) / N. Mahut (FRA) vs K. Krawietz (GER) / F. Martin (FRA) 

Not even a two-hour rain delay could stop Jannik Sinner from maintaining a pair of perfect records on Thursday at the Miami Open presented by Itau.

The Italian prevailed 6-3, 6-1in a weather-disrupted quarter-final inside Hard Rock Stadium and he has now won all eight sets he has played at this year’s edition of the hard-court ATP Masters 1000 event in Florida. The 10th seed was victorious in one hour and 15 minutes and improved his ATP Head2Head record against Ruusuvuori to 5-0.

“We both played well today but I won the important points,” Sinner said. “It’s never easy when you are up and you get interrupted, but I came back and played well.”

Most Match Wins In 2023

* Playing Wednesday night in Miami

Although Sinner did not quite hit the heights of his sublime fourth-round performance against Andrey Rublev, the Italian stayed solid in all facets of his game and raised his level when needed to nullify Ruusuvuori’s power. After fending off the first break point of the match to hold in the fourth game, Sinner broke the Finn’s serve for 3-2 in the next. That sequence proved pivotal for the direction of the match.

The 21-year-old World No. 11, who has shown he is capable of striking winners from all corners of the court during his run on the fast-paced courts in Miami, arrowed a backhand return winner to break again in the ninth game and seal the opening set. That was the second of four games in a row for the Italian before rain forced the players off court with Sinner leading 6-3, 2-0.

After play resumed following a two-hour rain delay, Sinner quickly held to take a 3-0 lead in the second set. He never looked back, improving to 20-4 on the season. 

Sinner now holds a 12-2 record in Miami, where he reached his only previous ATP Masters 1000 championship match in 2021. He next prepares for a semi-final clash against Carlos Alcaraz or Taylor Fritz. 

Does Taylor Fritz eat Hot Pockets before practice when he is home?

“I don’t really want to answer that to be honest!” he said, cracking a laugh.

The American No. 1 answered that question and plenty more in this week’s edition of ATP Uncovered. Grigor Dimitrov, Hubert Hurkacz, John Isner, Tommy Paul and Andrey Rublev all put their reporter’s hat on to come up with a good question for the Top 10 star.

Other questions Fritz’s colleagues posed include:

– Why do people call you ‘The Golden Key’?

– What is your hair routine, Taylor? It always looks very good on court.

– What’s the ultimate strategy to beat you?

Find out Fritz’s answers — and in some cases, non-answers — in the full video.

The 25-year-old will play World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals of the Miami Open presented by Itau Wednesday evening.

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has confirmed the host nations for the 2023 Davis Cup Finals Group Stage, while the draw for the Finals Group Stage took place in Malaga on Wednesday afternoon.

The Unipol Arena in Bologna, Italy and the Pabellón Municipal Fuente de San Luis in Valencia, Spain return as host venues for the Group Stage this season after hosting successful events in 2022. Italy, Canada, Sweden and Chile will contest Group A in Bologna, while Spain, Serbia, Czech Republic and Korea, Rep. will contest Group C in Valencia.

Great Britain remains a host nation for 2023, with this year’s event taking place at the AO Arena in Manchester – the first time that the city has hosted Davis Cup action since Great Britain played Romania at the Northern Lawn Tennis Club in July 1994. Great Britain, Australia, France and Switzerland will contest Group B in Manchester.

Two-time Davis Cup champion nation Croatia completes the list of 2023 Finals Group Stage host nations, with the host city and arena to be announced in due course. Croatia, Netherlands, USA and Finland will contest Group D.

The Finals Group Stage takes place on 12-17 September 2023. Group winners and runners-up will progress to the Final 8 knockout stage at the Palacio de Deportes José María Martín Carpena in Malaga, Spain on 21-26 November 2023. The draw for the Final 8 will take place following the Group Stage in September.

2023 Davis Cup Finals Group Stage draw
Group A
Host: Bologna, Italy

Canada (1)
Italy (*)
Sweden
Chile

Group B
Host: Manchester, Great Britain

Australia (2)
Great Britain (*)
France
Switzerland

Group C
Host: Valencia, Spain

Spain (3) (*)
Serbia
Czech Republic
Korea, Rep.

Group D
Host: Croatia

Croatia (4) (*)
Netherlands
USA
Finland

(#) = seeded nation; (*) host nation

The Miami Open presented by Itau quarter-finals begin Wednesday in Florida, where the Pepperstone ATP Rankings stakes are high for Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev and more of the world’s biggest stars.

Alcaraz, who will play Taylor Fritz in the last eight, must win the title to retain World No. 1 next Monday. Anything less and Novak Djokovic will return to top spot.

The Spaniard returned to World No. 1 after winning the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells for the first time. The 19-year-old, who is the defending champion in Miami, is now three victories from completing the ‘Sunshine Double’.

Former World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev also has an opportunity to climb by the end of the week. Currently No. 5 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, he can pass Casper Ruud and move to World No. 4 if he lifts the trophy.

As recently as last month, Medvedev was World No. 12. But the 27-year-old has won 21 of his past 22 matches, a stretch during which he claimed crowns in Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai. He will face first-time ATP Masters 1000 quarter-finalist Christopher Eubanks for a spot in the last four.

Miami Quarter-finalists – Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings

The biggest opportunities for movement come slightly lower down the list. Fritz, Jannik Sinner and Karen Khachanov each have an opportunity to ascend to World No. 6 on Monday by winning the title.

Only 800 points separate No. 6 and No. 15 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. Khachanov is currently No. 14 on the list, but the former Rolex Paris Masters titlist can cut that number by more than half by winning his second Masters 1000 trophy.

Khachanov, who upset Stefanos Tsitsipas in the fourth round, will climb to World No. 11 if he defeats 2022 Miami semi-finalist Francisco Cerundolo in the next round. The Argentine Cerundolo, who has enjoyed his greatest success at Hard Rock Stadium, will crack the Top 20 for the first time if he claims the crown.