On a Friday filled with upsets at the Miami Open presented by Itau, Guido Pella provided another stunning second-round casualty by defeating ninth seed Grigor Dimitrov under the lights 6-3, 7-6(4).

The Bulgarian struggled to find his timing on Stadium Court, hitting 38 unforced errors to 18 winners. Meanwhile, the World No. 158 in the Emirates ATP Rankings appeared inspired by the occasion and rose to the challenge with several flashy winners from the baseline. He also remained calm in saving a set point on his serve down 4-5 in the second set and again at 5-6. Nerves got the better of Pella with a double fault on his first match point up 6/3 in the second-set tie-break, but a backhand sent wide by Dimitrov in the next point wrapped up play after one hour and 55 minutes.

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The win gives the Argentine his first victory over a Top 15 player since defeating then-No. 11 John Isner at the Rio Open presented by Claro in February 2016. Pella has come alive in recent weeks, winning a round at the BNP Paribas Open and reaching the quarter-finals at the Brasil Open.

Next up for Pella is Nicolas Mahut, a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 winner over 23^rd seed Steve Johnson. Neither Mahut or Pella have reached the round of 16 at an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event.

Thirteenth seed Jack Sock received a berth into the third round after Yoshihito Nishioka was forced to retire due to a left knee injury. The American trailed 2-4 in the opening set before Nishioka was unable to continue. Next up for Sock is Jiri Vesely, who prevailed in a marathon encounter over 19^th seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-3.

In a match filled with twists and turns, 25th seed Fernando Verdasco defeated #NextGenATP American Ernesto Escobedo 7-6(6), 7-5. Verdasco saved five set points in the first-set tie-break, fighting back from 3/6, 6/7 and 8/9 before converting on his second set point. The Spaniard was unable to serve out the match at 5-3 in the second set, but regrouped to take the win in one hour and 47 minutes. His reward is a third-round clash with second seed Kei Nishikori. 

Fifth seed Rafael Nadal received a rousing welcome on Friday at the Miami Open presented by Itau and lived up to his seeding on Stadium Court, moving past Dudi Sela 6-3, 6-4 to reach the third round.

The Spaniard saved both break points he faced and required just a single break of serve in each set to advance in one hour and 21 minutes. Nadal continues his dominance against Sela, boosting his FedEx ATP Head2Head record against the Israeli player to 2-0 and dropping just 13 games in the five sets they’ve played.

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Nadal is eager to clinch his first title in Miami after finishing runner-up here on four occasions (2005, 2008, 2011, 2014). He’ll now play 26^th seed Philipp Kohlschreiber, a winner earlier in the day over #NextGenATP player Taylor Fritz. Although Nadal leads his FedEx ATP Head2Head against Kohlschreiber 13-1, the German has taken a set in six of their seven hard-court meetings.

Federico Delbonis caused one of the biggest upsets of the day in rallying to defeat 15^th seed Pablo Carreno Busta 1-6, 7-5, 6-2. The Argentine was down a set and 1-3 before beginning his astonishing comeback to claim victory in one hour and 44 minutes.

Benoit Paire got on a hot streak with his forehand to defeat 21^st seed Pablo Cuevas. The Frenchman missed a chance to serve out the opening set at 5-4, but regrouped by winning the next eight games to take the match. Paire improves his FedEx ATP Head2Head against Cuevas to 3-0 and has yet to drop a set to him.

Kei Nishikori got his Miami Open presented by Itau campaign off to a flying start on Friday, advancing through his opening match 6-4 6-3 over a tricky opponent in Kevin Anderson.

The second seed didn’t face a break point in the contest and won 88 per cent of his first-serve points. Nishikori broke Anderson three times, including in the final game of the match, to secure victory in one hour and 28 minutes. He improves his FedEx ATP Head2Head against Anderson to 3-1, gaining revenge from losing their most recent match at the Shanghai Rolex Masters in 2015.

“I thought it was a great match to start the tournament. Played really solid. Everything was almost perfect. I’m very happy with the tennis today,” said Nishikori. “Hopefully every match is going to be like that.”

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Nishikori has excelled in Miami in recent years. In addition to finishing runner-up last year (l. Djokovic), he has not lost before the quarter-finals in his past three appearances.

Next up for the Japanese star is the winner between 25^th seed Fernando Verdasco and #NextGenATP player Ernesto Escobedo. Nishikori is even in his FedEx ATP Head2Head with Verdasco at 2-2, but has won their past two matches.

“I’ve been practising with Escobedo a couple of times. Very powerful player. He can hit very hard from the forehand and backhand, so he can be a dangerous player,” said Nishikori. “Verdasco has been playing very good the past couple of months. He’s always a tough player and has a lot of experience. It’s going to be a tough one.”

#NextGenATP player Jared Donaldson caused an upset by taking out 28^th seed Mischa Zverev 6-4, 6-4. The American qualifier, currently No. 95 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, will get a prime time close-up when he plays third seed Raonic in the third round.

Fabio Fognini came out on top in a battle of spins and slices over No. 30 seed Joao Sousa 7-6(8), 2-6, 6-3. The Italian saved two set points in the opening set tie-break before eventually taking the match in two hours and 23 minutes. Fognini now plays Jeremy Chardy, who took out seventh seed Marin Cilic earlier in the day, for a place in the second week.

Most of us don’t get the chance to meet our tennis idols, let alone play them, but #NextGenATP player Denis Shapovalov did one better and defeated them. 

The teenager prevailed 6-3, 6-3 in an all-Canadian battle against good friend and second seed Vasek Pospisil at the $50,000 ATP Challenger Tour event in Guadalajara, Mexico. Shapovalov remained in control of the baseline rallies throughout their second-round match to advance in 73 minutes.

“It’s similar to when I played Felix Auger-Aliassime in Drummondville. You feel bad after the match because you wish the best for them,” said Shapovalov about playing against a friend. “Vasek just beat Andy Murray the other week, so he easily should be in the Top 50. But when you’re in the match, you’re both trying to win. It was still fun for me to have a chance to see how my game matched up to his.

“Vasek was one of my idols growing up. I always wanted to be like him and play like him,” he added. “To have gotten so close to him on tour and have all the advice he’s given me on and off court, how to manage myself as a player and deal with things, has been really important and helpful for me.”

Shapovalov is riding a wave of confidence after capturing his first Challenger title last week in front of a home crowd in Drummondville, Canada. The 17-year-old stormed through the draw without losing a set and his stellar week pushed him inside the Top 200 of the Emirates ATP Rankings for the first time.

“It’s incredible to have won my first Challenger on home soil. It’s a big confidence boost and I think I’m playing some great tennis,” said Shapovalov. “The first round here in Guadalajara was very tough for me. It’s difficult going from indoor hard courts to outdoor ones, dealing with the wind and the altitude, but hopefully I can keep playing well.”

Next up for Shapovalov in Guadalajara is a quarter-final match against qualifier Lloyd Glasspool of Great Britain. He’s eager to pick up his second Challenger title on Sunday and then begin preparing for the clay-court season.

“It’s been an incredible tournament so far. A lot of people have come out to watch the matches, which is important for me because I love playing in front of people,” said Shapovalov. “It’s a nice city and the venue is amazing, so I’m really happy to be here.”

Philipp Petzschner gave himself the perfect 33^rd birthday present at the Miami Open presented by Itau, teaming up with Alexander Peya to oust BNP Paribas Open champions Raven Klaasen and Rajeev Ram 6-3, 7-5 on Friday.

As a reward for defeating the fifth seeds, Petzschner/Peya advance to the second round to face the winners of Dominic Thiem/Nenad Zimonjic and brothers Alexander Zverev/Mischa Zverev.

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Daniel Nestor and Brian Baker edged past Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic 6-7(3), 7-6(4), 11-9. They will take on second seeds Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut or the pairing of Dominic Inglot and Florin Mergea in the second round.

Marin Cilic overcame disappointment in the singles to partner his countryman Nikola Mektic to a fighting 3-6, 6-3, 10-7 win over Argentinian duo Diego Schwartzman and Horacio Zeballos.

Milos Raonic is the first player to move into the Miami Open presented by Itau third round courtesy of a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Viktor Troicki on Friday.

The third seed has returned to the ATP World Tour having been sidelined by a right hamstring tear, which forced him to concede a walkover in the Delray Beach Open final (vs. Sock) last month, before withdrawing from Abierto Mexicano Telcel and the BNP Paribas Open.

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Back on court and the Canadian entered his match against Troicki, who has reached the fourth round in Miami twice, leading their FedEx ATP Head2Head 3-1.

Raonic clinched the opening set and looked on course for the win with a 3-1 second set lead. However, World No. 38 Troicki restored parity until 5-5 when Raonic’s pressure on return secured the deciding break. Raonic advances to play the winner of Mischa Zverev or #NextGenATP player Jared Donaldson.

Dominic Thiem has already reached four quarter-finals at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 level, including last week at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. The 23-year-old Austrian talks about his favourite tournament, city and what makes the Masters 1000 titles so difficult to win.

Which is your favourite Masters 1000 tournament?
Madrid. I beat my first Top 10 guy there (Stan Wawrinka). The food is prepared by an Austrian company. I know the guys there. They treat me really well, so it’s a tournament I look forward to every year.

Which is your favourite Masters 1000 host city?
Rome is a legendary city and the Italian food is the best in the world.

What do you like about Miami, host city of this week’s Miami Open presented by Itau?
Miami is an unbelievable city; it’s always a highlight to come here with many things to do. It’s such a traditional tournament and it’s always a pleasure to come here.

Can you remember your Masters 1000 debut?
It was in Indian Wells in 2014. It’s a very nice memory. I qualified and won two rounds, so immediately I liked to play the Masters 1000s.

What has been your favourite off-court activity at a Masters 1000?
Last year in Miami I went to Jungle Island, which was very nice. There are many animals and we could carry them around and play with them.

What has been your best Masters 1000 win?
When I beat Stan in Madrid in 2014. That was my first win over a Top 10 guy and it is still probably one of my best wins.

What is the toughest part about Masters 1000 tournaments?
It’s unbelievably tough. As you saw in Indian Wells the draw was a joke. From the second round there were only blockbuster matches. You have to be on fire from the first round and you have to beat only good guys to win the tournament. That’s why so few players have won one.