Steve Flink: “Serena benefits from long matches. Medvedev's injuries are a concern” - UBITENNIS
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Steve Flink: “Serena benefits from long matches. Medvedev’s injuries are a concern”

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UbiTennis CEO Ubaldo Scanagatta and his colleague, Hall-of-Famer Steve Flink, discuss the events of the tenth day of the American Slam, spanning from the Russian derby to Vika Azarenka’s unbelievable form.

The final stages of the 2020 US Open are coming fast, and, despite a whole contintent setting them apart, Ubaldo Scanagatta couldn’t refrain from recording his traditional recaps in the company of Hall-of-Famer Steve Flink. Can this version of Serena Williams defeat Azarenka, who left just one game to Elise Mertens? Who will win the men’s title? All of this and more are tackled in the following video: 

VIDEO SCHEDULE

00:00 – A few words about Wednesday’s opening matches, another Serena Williams comeback (this time against Pironkova) and the Russian derby between Rublev and Medvedev.

01:25 – Ubaldo: “Serena Williams’ performance is surprising, she seems to be improving with time…” Flink: “I agree, long matches are helping her. I thought she was done but she somehow pulled it off.” Which was the key moment?

3:40 – The American is finding her feet, but can she clinch the title against the likes of Osaka and Brady?

6:00 – “Nobody expected Pironkova to play at such a high level, she survived a couple of matches against tough opponents like Muguruza and Vekic. As for last night’s bout against Serena, she was the best player on court for about 90 minutes, but I never expected her to win.” Will she keep on playing?

7:15 – Pironkova’s pride for her popularity in her homecountry of Bulgaria, for her achievements, and for the comparisons with Grigor Dimitrov.

09:00 – The Russian derby: “The two players grew up together, they have played each other countless times in training. I have no idea how Rublev lost the first set…” How would have the match shaped up, had he won the opener?

11:25 – Rublev was furious after losing that tie-breaker, but what about Medvedev’s physical struggles in the third?

14:55 – “The women’s semifinals will take place on Thursday, and Serena will have had a few more hours to rest compared with Azarenka. Their matches have always been very physical…” What will be the outcome of the mothers’ derby?

22:50 – Medvedev will play Thiem next – who’s the favourite? “It really depends on how the Russian’s body holds up, going the distance might be a problem.”

24:20 – The other semifinal match involves Zverev and Carreno Busta: “Not many would have predicted the Spaniard to get back to the semis before the Djokovic affair. He is a player who never beats himself.” Zverev has frequent lapses in focus, will they undermine his chances?”  

Transcript by Giuseppe Di Paola, edited by Tommaso Villa

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Carlos Alcaraz beats Lorenzo Musetti to reach his third consecutive quarter final in Miami

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Carlos Alcaraz beat Lorenzo Musetti 6-3 6-3 to advance to the quarter final at the Miami Open. Alcaraz has extended her winning streak to nine consecutive matches. The Spaniard is aiming to become the first man to win the Sunshine Double since Roger Federer in 2017. Alcaraz claimed the Indian Wells title, winning his first title since his Wimbledon triumph last July. 

Alcaraz now leads 3-1 in his head-to-head matches against Musetti, who won their first meeting in the Hamburg final in 2022. Alcaraz beat Musetti in the fourth round at Roland Garros 6-3 6-2 6-2 and in the second round at the China Open 6-2 6-2 in 2023. 

Alcaraz broke serve in the opening game. The Spaniard earned two break points to go up 5-2 in the seventh game but Musetti fended them off. Alcaraz created two more break points in the ninth game and converted his second set point to win the first set 6-3. 

Alcaraz started the second set with a hold at 15 in the first game. Musetti earned his first break point in the third game, as Alcaraz made two unforced errors, but Alcaraz saved it to hold serve. Alcaraz converted his third break point in the sixth game to open up a 4-2 lead, but Musetti broke straight back in the seventh game for 3-4. Alcaraz broke for the second time immediately in the eighth game for 5-3 earning a chance to serve for the match. 

Alcaraz served out the win on his first match point to reach his third consecutive quarter final. Alcaraz set up a match against Grigor Dimitrov, who beat Hurbert Hurkacz 3-6 6-3 7-6 (7-3).

“I don’t know if it was the best game that I am playing, but without a doubt it’s the best feeling. I am feeling great on the court. I am moving great, not injured or thinking about the ankle injury anymore. I think this is the best feeling since last summer”, said Alcaraz. 

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Victoria Azarenka reaches the semifinal at the Miami Open for the fifth time in her career

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Victoria Azarenka beat Yulia Putinteseva 7-6 (7-4) 1-6 6-3 to reach the semifinal at the Miami Open for the fifth time in her career. 

Putintseva earned the first break in the first game to open up a 2-0 lead. Azarenka broke serve in the sixth game to draw level to 3-3. Putintseva broke for the second time in the ninth game to take a 5-4. 

Azarenka saved three set points on Putintseva’s serve at 5-4. The Belarusian player missed out on two set points at 6-5 before the set was decided by a tie-break. 

Both players traded mini-breaks on the first points of the tie-break. Azarenka earned two mini-breaks to win the tie-break 7-4. Putintseva earned an early break in the second game to open up a 2-0 lead. Azarenka broke straight back in the third game for 1-2. Putintseva won four consecutive games including two breaks to win the second set 6-1 forcing the match to the decider. Azarenka broke twice in the fourth and sixth games to open up a 5-1 lead. Putintseva saved a match point at 5-2 and held for 5-3, but Azarenka served out the win on her second match point. 

Azarenka is now a win away from her fourth Miami Open final and her first since she completed the Sunshine Double in 2016, when she won in Indian Wells and Miami in 2016. 

Azarenaka will face the winner of the quarter final match against Maria Sakkari and Elena Rybakina. 

Azarenka is playing the Miami Open for the 15th in her career. She won this tournament in 2009, 2011 and 2016. The former world number 1 has achieved 43 match wins in Miami. She is fifth most successful player in the history of this tournament. Only Serena Williams (76), Venus Williams (76), Stefanie Graf (59) and Gabriela Sabatini (45) won more matches than Azarenka. 

Azarenka has won ten WTA 1000 titles since 2009. Only Simona Halep (29) and Serena Williams (26) have reached more WTA 1000 semifinals than Azarenka (24). 

Azarenka has extended her winning streak to 3-0 in her head-to-head matches against Putintseva. In their previous meetings Azarenka beat Putintseva in a match tie-break at Melbourne Grampians Trophy in 2021 and and won 7-5 in the third set at Doha 2022. 

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Jannik Sinner edges Christoper O’Connel to reach the quarter final for the fourth consecutive year at the Miami Open

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Jannik Sinner overcame Christopher O’Connell 6-4 6-3 to reach the quarter finals at the Miami Open. 

O’Connell earned an early break in the first game and consolidated the break with a hold to take a 2-0 lead in the opening set. Sinner trailed 1-3 0-30, but he won four consecutive points to avoid going down a double break. 

O’Connell saved a break point in the fourth and sixth games. Sinner won four consecutive games with two breaks of serve from 2-4 down to seal the first set 6-4 after 58 minutes. 

Sinner earned a break in O’Connell’s first service game of the second set. Sinner held serve at love to open up a 3-0 lead. One of the spectators fainted and the match was suspended for ten minutes. 

Sinner held his next two serving points and earned three match points at 40-0 when he was serving for the match. Sinner sealed the win on his third match point in the ninth game to draw level to 1-1 in his two head-to-head matches against O’Connell. Sinner dropped just two points behind his serve in the second set. 

Sinner has improved his seasonal record to 19-1 including his two titles at the Australian Open and Rotterdam. He has reached the quarter final in Miami for the fourth consecutive year. He finished runner-up in two finals at this tournament to Hubert Hurkacz in 2021 and Danil Medvedev in 2023. 

“He started off really well. I made a couple of mistakes. When you are a break down especially in the beginning. It’s always tough, also mentally. Today was much different than Sunday’s match. It was much more windy, so I had to adjust a little bit. I had some chances even before I broke him, so I know that I was doing the right things. I tried to serve really solid. He made a couple of mistakes in important mmoments and I think today was the key”, said Sinner. 

Sinner set up a quarter final match against six-time ATP Challenger Tour champion Tomas Machac, who beat Matteo Arnaldi 6-3 6-3. Machac has moved up to number 42 in the ATP Live Ranking. The Czech player has reached the quarter final at a Masters 1000 tournament for the first time. 

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