Miami: Taylor Fritz was upset by Brazilian qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wilde in straight sets at the Miami Open on Saturday as the top-ranked US men crashed out of the tournament.
Three of America’s top four ranked players were eliminated during Saturday’s opener, with Francis Tiafoe also out and Tommy Paul withdrawing.
Clad in the bright yellow of Brazil, Seyboth Wild, ranked 76th in the world, was buoyed by the loud support of his countrymen on the stadium court. He produced some impressive winners and some spectacular shots on his way to a 6-3, 6-4 victory. Fritz from the 12th seed.
“I played a really solid game today, I barely missed,” Seyboth told Wild after his win.
“It was exactly what was planned with my coach before the match. I held my backhand quite well and won the match with my forehand,” he added.
Fritz’s early exit came shortly after Tiafoe left for another lower-ranked player in Australian Christopher O’Connell.
O’Connell battled to a 7-5, 7-6 (7/5) win over 21st seed Tiafoe after play started following a three-hour rain delay.
Paul had to withdraw with an ankle injury in his match against fellow American wild card Martin Damm. Paul won the first set 6-4 and was trailing 2-1 in the second when he surrendered.
Greek 10th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas also headed for the exit at Hard Rock Stadium after being upset by 126th seed Denis Shapovalov of Canada.
Shapovalov, 24, snapped an eight-game losing streak against top-20 players when he won back-to-back Masters 1000 matches for the first time since Cincinnati in 2022.
Italian Jannik Sinner, the world number three Australian Open champion, started his Miami bid in confidence with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over compatriot and qualifier Andrea Vavassori.
Britain’s Andy Murray advanced to the third round with a 7-6 (7/0) 6-3 win over Tomas Martin Etcheverry.
The match was tied at 3-3 in the first set when Friday’s downpour forced the match to Saturday. Murray, 36, has lost his last two matches against the Argentine, who is 32 places above the 62nd-ranked Scot.
America’s woes continued on the women’s side of the tournament as Sloane Stephens ran into Romania’s Sorana Cirstea, who triumphed 6-2, 6-1.
Jessica Pegula, however, advanced to the third round after her opponent Zhu Lin had to retire ill while trailing 6-4, 4-1 in the second set.
Rain on Friday led to the cancellation of most of the scheduled matches, so there was a busy schedule later on Saturday.
On the men’s side, world number two Carlos Alcaraz and defending champion Daniil Medvedev were in action, and the top two women, Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenková, were also on court.
