Miami - Day 3 Svitolina, Sabalenka exit

Day Three schedule in the Miami Open - round two matches in the ATP and WTA draws.

Miami Open presented by Itaú - a WTA Premier Mandatory category tournament, on Hard Laykold, in Miami, Florida, USA, 20-31 March 2019.

Defending champion:

Sloane Stephens (13) who defeated Jelena Ostapenko (6) 7-6(5) 6-1

WTA second round

• Naomi Osaka (1) v qualifier Yanina Wickmayer 

Former world number 12 (2010), Belgian player Wickmayer is still only 29 and attempting to return to the times where she was competing with the top guns and winning titles.  Among her achievements, though, Yanina never defeated a player who at the time was world number one, and that was the assignment for her today, having won through qualifying and negotiated the main draw first round.

Osaka began like a house on fire, breaking the Belgian serve in the opening game, the Japanese forehand causing problems.  The consolidation was a love game, an ace included.

Osaka broke twice more, and lost just two of fourteen points on her own serve for the set which was wrapped up 6-0.

Wickmayer won her first game in the opener to set two which was a mixed affair.  Osaka levelled, but only after seeing seven game points disappear.  Another strong service game from Wickmayer and then the pressure was brought to bear on Osaka for the very first time in the contest.

Three break points were faced by the top seed en route to a service hold, but Wickmayer had certainly made her intentions clear - this match was no longer a walk in the park for Osaka.

In an eighteen point game, Wickmayer had five game points, there were six deuces, two aces from the Belgian, and two forehand return winners from Osaka.  The second of those returns produced a third break point and this one worked for Osaka who led 3-2.

In a flash, Wickmayer broke back, two backhand screamers sealing the game.

No more breaks of serve for the set, although the pair dealt successfully with some break point issues in games 7-9.

The tie break was a Wickmayer special, after an Osaka ace gave the world #1 an early advantage.  

At 3-3, Wickmayer’s stretch for a desperate forehand was incredible and surprised an attacking Osaka into a fundamental error.  A seventh and eighth ace off the Belgian racquet followed and Wickmayer had three set points.

Outstanding defence forced Osaka to keep hitting before she finally surrendered a shot into the net and sets were one apiece.

The momentum was with Wickmayer, but once Osaka reassembled herself, and broke the Belgian serve in game two of the decider, the match was on its final trajectory.

Wickmayer had one chance to be back on terms, but her break point in game five was denied with an ace, and from there Osaka was sailing.

A match that began with such domination proved to be a great two hour spectacle, but Naomi Osaka had the necessary edge and won 6-0 6-7(3) 6-1.

• Su-Wei Hsieh (27) defeated Alison Riske 6-2 7-5
• Ajla Tomljanovic defeated Aryna Sabalenka (9) in the first major upset of the tournament.
• Elise Mertens (14) defeated Pauline Parmentier 6-2 7-5
• Anett Kontaveit (21) defeated Amanda Anisimova 6-3 1-6 6-4
• Marketa Vondrousova defeated Jelena Ostapenko (22), last years finalist, 7-5 6-1
• Bianca Andreescu defeated Sofia Kenin (32) 6-3 6-3
• Dasha Kasatkina (14) defeated wildcard Cori Gauff 6-3 6-2
• Venus Williams defeated Carla Suárez Navarro (24) 7-6(4) 6-1
• Viktoria Kuzmova defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (31) 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5
• Qualifier Monica Niculescu defeated Garbiñe Muguruza 7-6(0) 4-6 6-2
• Caroline Wozniacki (13) defeated Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-4 6-4
• Anastasija Sevastova (11) defeated Katerina Siniakova 6-2 0-6 6-4
• Qiang Wang (18) defeated Johanna Konta 6-4 6-0
• Angie Kerber (8) defeated qualifier Karolina Muchova 3-6 6-3 6-3
• Yulia Putintseva defeated Belinda Bencic 6-3 7-5
• Tatjana Maria defeated Camila Giorgi (29) 6-3 6-4
• Sloane Stephens (4) defeated Ons Jabeur 6-2 6-3
• Serena Williams (10) defeated Rebecca Peterson 6-3 1-6 6-1
• Simona Halep (2) defeated qualifier Taylor Townsend 6-1 6-3
• Karolina Pliskova (5) defeated Petra Martic 6-3 6-4
• Yafan Wang defeated Elina Svitolina (6), the second top ten player defeated in today’s play.
• Polona Hercog defeated qualifier Misaki Doi 7-6(4) 6-4
• Alizé Cornet defeated Mihaela Buzarnescu (30) 7-6(7) 6-1
• Danielle Collins (25) defeated wildcard Whitney Osuigwe 7-6(5) 6-0