Medevdev eyeing No. 1 ranking, tops Murray in Miami

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Daniil Medvedev never gave Andy Murray a chance.

The top-seeded Medvedev opened his bid to reclaim the No. 1 ranking Saturday by topping Murray 6-4, 6-2 in the second round of the Miami Open. Medvedev never faced a break point in any of his nine service games.

He can regain the No. 1 spot by making the Miami semifinals.

“Definitely, I have a lot of motivation to try and get it back," Medvedev said.

Only five men in the past 18 years have held the No. 1 ranking that is currently held by Novak Djokovic. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are also past No. 1's — while Medvedev and Murray are the others. Murray was No. 1 from November 2016 through August 2017, and that distinction was handed off between Djokovic, Federer and Nadal since before Medvedev got there for the first time on Feb. 28.

Medvedev's stay was brief; his three-week reign ended officially on Monday when Djokovic returned to the top of the rankings. But with three more wins in Miami, Medvedev would be back on top.

“I still felt like in the rallies and stuff I could hang with him, and I didn't feel like from the back of the court I was getting like really outplayed,” said Murray, who got into Miami on a wild card and is continuing his comeback after undergoing hip resurfacing surgery. “I'm sure some people will think otherwise.”

Murray is a two-time Miami Open winner, those victories coming at the tournament's former home in nearby Key Biscayne. His loss meant only one past Miami men's winner remains in the field — that being defending champion Hubert Hurkacz, the No. 8 seed who defeated Arthur Rinderknech 7-6 (5), 6-2 and moved into the third round.

Meanwhile, Naomi Osaka moved into the fourth round without ever taking the court. Osaka — the former women's No. 1-ranked player who got straight-set wins on Wednesday and Thursday to get into Round 3 — got a walkover victory Saturday when Karolina Muchova withdrew citing a need for recovery.