Rybakina beats Elise Mertens to reach quarter-finals

MIAMI: Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina is through to the Miami Open quarter-finals after beating Elise Mertens in straight sets. The Kazakh 10th seed defeated her Belgian opponent 6-4 6-3. Rybakina is now unbeaten in 11 matches, while victory in Miami would see her achieve the rare ‘Sunshine Double’ following her title win at Indian Wells earlier in March.

She will play Italy’s Martina Trevisan in the last eight. It will mark a first WTA 1000 quarter-final for 25th seed Trevisan after she beat Latvia’s former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko 6-3 6-3. Elsewhere, Belarus’ world number two Aryna Sabalenka and world number three Jessica Pegula of the United States both progressed.

Australian Open champion Sabalenka will play Sorana Cirstea in the last eight after she beat Czech Republic’s Barbora Krejcikova 6-3 6-2, while Pegula defeated Poland’s Magda Linette 6-1 7-5 to set up a meeting with Russia’s Anastasia Potapova.

Bianca Andreescu’s tournament is over after the Canadian withdrew from her match against Ekaterina Alexandrova because of injury. The 2019 US Open champion was applauded as she was taken off court in a wheelchair after injuring her left ankle. She had lost the first set on a tie-break but was leading the second 2-0. Andreescu, who has not won a tournament since her maiden Grand Slam triumph, tore her meniscus in 2020, while the following year her mental health suffered and she considered giving up tennis for good. “I’m just really sorry that it happened to her,” Alexandrova said. “Seeing her on the court in so much pain, it’s just painful to watch. I think she’s going to be fine soon, and I’m wishing for her speedy recovery.”

Meanwhile, Stefanos Tsitsipas progressed to the last 16 of the men’s singles with a 6-3 4-6 6-4 victory over Chilean qualifier Cristian Garin in what was his first appearance on court in Miami.

The Greek received a first-round bye before second-round opponent Richard Gasquet withdrew through injury. Second seed Tsitsipas will face Karen Khachanov next, after the Russian breezed past Czech Jiri Lehecka 6-2 6-4. Argentina’s 2022 semi-finalist Francisco Cerundolo defeated Canada’s world number six Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-2 7-5 to set up a meeting with Italian Lorenzo Sonego, who knocked out 12th seed Frances Tiafoe 6-3 6-4.