Felix tops Coric to reach semifinal
MIAMI Canada’s Felix Auger-aliassime made history at the Miami Open on Wednesday night.
The Montreal teenager became the youngest semifinalist in the 34-year history of the event with a 7-6 (3), 6-2 win over 11th-seeded Borna Coric of Croatia.
The 18-year-old is the second qualifier to make the semis of the Miami Open, after Guillermo Canas of Argentina accomplished the feat in 2007.
He will face American John Isner, ranked ninth in the world, on Friday.
One night (and early morning) earlier, Canada’s Denis Shapovalov worked the late-night shift to reach the quarter-finals.
The 19-year-old left-hander beat 20-year-old Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (3) in a fourthround match that started following a two-hour rain delay and ended shortly after 1:30 Wednesday morning.
The match was extremely close: Each player won 100 points. It offered a peek at the future of men’s tennis, with Shapovalov seeded No. 20 and Tsitsipas No. 8.
“I knew Stefanos was going to be a tough match,” Shapovalov said. “I was ready for a long battle and, sure enough, it went the distance. I’m just happy with the way I controlled myself.”
Shapovalov beat a top-10 opponent for the second time in his career. He’ll next play No. 28-seeded Frances Tiafoe. The 21-year-old American eliminated Belgium’s David Goffin with a 7-5, 7-6 (6) win on Tuesday.
“We’re both shotmakers,” Shapovalov said. “I’m just ready for another fun, tough match.”
The Canadian pair marks the first time two teens have been in any ATP Tour Masters 1000 event since 2007. It’s the first time since 2013 that two Canadians have reached the quarter-finals or better in a Masters 1000 event. Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil did it at the Rogers Cup that year.
Shapovalov and India’s Rohan Bopanna were scheduled to play a men’s doubles quarter-final Wednesday against American twins Bob and Mike Bryan, the No. 3 seeds.
The fifth-seeded women’s doubles team of Gabriela Dabrowski and Yifan Xu of China lost 6-2, 6-2 to Victoria Elise Mertens of Belgium and Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus in a quarter-final.
Meanwhile, Roger Federer will face a hectic few days if he’s going to win another Miami Open.
Federer is through to the quarter-finals, having little trouble on the way to a 6-4, 6-2 victory over 13th-seeded Daniil Medvedev on Wednesday. The match was pushed back a day because of rain.
So now, to win what would be his fourth Miami title, Federer will have to prevail four times in a five-day span. Next up for the No. 4 seed is a quarter-final Thursday against No. 6 seed Kevin Anderson.
On the women’s side, second-seeded Simona Halep beat 18th-seeded Qiang Wang 6-4, 7-5 in the quarter-finals. Halep would return to No. 1 in the world if she wins her semifinal match.
The Canadian Press, with files from The Associated Press