Women's Tennis

Serena Williams punched her ticket to the fourth round of the 2021 French Open with a win over fellow American Danielle Collins in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, at Stade Roland-Garros in Paris.

Williams' victory didn't come without a little tension as she dropped four consecutive games early in the second set before storming back to advance. She recorded 22 winners and five aces in Friday's third-round match.

The three-time French Open champion, who's the Grand Slam tournament's No. 7 seed, moves on to face 21st-seeded Elena Rybakina in the round of 16.

Running. it. down!

A little extra in those 👟@serenawilliams #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/3zeGIRrchG

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 4, 2021

Williams didn't put together her most efficient match, tallying 20 unforced errors and five double faults while getting just 59 percent of her first serves in, but she made up for it with a strong performance on the return. She won 45 percent of receiving points and converted four of her eight break-point chances.

It's consistent with the 39-year-old tennis legend's play so far in the season's second major. She was pushed to a first-set tiebreaker by Irina-Camelia Begu in the first round and dropped the second set to Mihaela Buzarnescu in Round 2 before taking the third set in convincing 6-1 fashion.

She hasn't found peak form quite yet, but ultimately it's hard to complain about reaching the fourth round while dropping only a single set, especially in a Grand Slam.

Williams is now just four wins away from winning her 24th major singles title, which would tie her with Margaret Court for the most in history. It would also mark her first Grand Slam title since the 2017 Australian Open and her first French Open championship since 2015.

She was asked in her post-match interview about being an inspiration for people around the world.

"I really don't think about it too much because I'm still playing, but I feel good to hopefully be an inspiration and continue to be an inspiration," Williams said. "It's fun, I just really enjoy my time here and I enjoy playing in front of this crowd and in general I always try to have fun."

“It’s tough because they play like it’s the Super Bowl. And I’m like man where were you playing like that before? That’s the joy of being Serena, I have to always be on my A game.”@serenawilliams | @jon_wertheim | #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/Tss70ajhGa

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 4, 2021

Collins was gamely throughout the match, breaking Williams' serve twice in the second set and winning 79 percent of points on her first serve, but it wasn't quite enough. She compiled more unforced errors (21) than winners (18) and more double faults (three) than aces (one).

Looking ahead, Williams and Rybakina will face off in their first WTA Tour meeting during Sunday's fourth-round action.

A potential showdown with Victoria Azarenka awaits if Serena reaches the quarterfinals.

Russian tennis player Yana Sizikova was arrested after her first-round doubles match at the 2021 French Open following an investigation into alleged match-fixing at last year's tournament.

Matthew Cooper of the Daily Mirror reported Friday the French Tennis Federation confirmed the arrest after a probe into last year's straight-sets loss by Sizikova and American Madison Brengle to the Romanian tandem of Andreea Mitu and Patricia Maria Tig. There have been no reports of Brengle being arrested or charged.

"We have not received any documents [regarding the case], so it's difficult to make an assessment of what has happened," Russian Tennis Federation president Shamil Tarpishchev told RIA Novosti (via Cooper).

In October, Ibrahim Naber of Die Welt reported investigators were alerted of potential fraud in the fifth game of the second set during the Sept. 30 match, which saw Sizikova serve two double faults.

The match was flagged by betting companies that deemed activity on the match suspicious, and an investigation was launched into potential "organized gang fraud" and "active and passive sports corruption," according to Cooper.

Sizikova returned to Roland Garros for this year's doubles tournament. She paired with fellow Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova in a lopsided loss (6-1, 6-1) Thursday to the Australian duo of Storm Sanders and Ajla Tomljanovic, and she was taken into custody after the match.

No further details about the match-fixing probe were immediately released.

Sizikova, a 26-year-old Moscow native, has spent most of her career on the ITF Women's Tour, winning 43 doubles titles, but she's also captured one WTA Tour doubles title—the 2019 Swiss Open alongside Anastasia Potapova.

She's never advanced beyond the first round of a Grand Slam tournament.

Ashleigh Barty, the No. 1 seed in the women's 2021 French Open draw, retired from her second-round match against Magda Linette because of injury.

Samuel Petrequin of the Associated Press reported Barty, who entered the tournament with a hip problem, started Thursday's match with her left thigh bandaged, and she struggled with her movement against Linette.

She dropped the first set 6-1, and the second was tied 2-2 when she decided to withdraw from the season's second Grand Slam event.

Barty: "We have had -- I mean, I've had my fair share of tears this week. It's all good. Everything happens for a reason. There will be a silver lining in this eventually. Once I find out what that is, it'll make me feel a little bit better. But it will be there, I'm sure." #RG21 pic.twitter.com/HQMyoSE7CW

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) June 3, 2021

Barty won the 2019 French Open for her career first major title but opted to skip her title defense last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 25-year-old Australian had played well leading up to this year's tournament, winning the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in April and reaching the final of the Madrid Open in May. However, she was forced to retire from her quarterfinal match in the Italian Open because of an injury in the final warm-up event.

Barty survived a first-round challenge from unseeded Bernarda Pera in the first round at Roland Garros, but she admitted afterward it would be "a little bit tough this week" because of injuries.

"Not going to hide behind the fact I'm not quite 100 percent, but I can guarantee that I will go out there with the right attitude every day and be accepting of that and give it a crack no matter what," she told reporters Tuesday. "It's going to be tough now without a doubt."

She tried to compete against Linette, but it became clear her typically strong movement was too restricted for her to perform near her usual level.

"I was battling the pain, and it just became too severe, and like I said, [it] was becoming unsafe," Barty said, per Petrequin.

The extent of her hip and thigh injuries are unknown.

Barty will have less than a month to recover if she wants to compete in the next Grand Slam tournament, Wimbledon, beginning June 28 at the All England Club.

She's never advanced beyond the fourth round of the season's final two majors, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, which kicks off Aug. 30.

Another consideration will be the Olympic tennis tournament that starts July 24. Barty is expected to represent Australia in the Games for the first time.

Serena Williams survived an upset bid from Mihaela Buzarnescu to reach the third round of the 2021 French Open at Stade Roland Garros in Paris.

Williams, a three-time French Open singles champion, advanced in three sets (6-3, 5-7, 6-1). The 39-year-old won 75 percent of points on her first serve (39 of 52) with five aces, and she held a slight edge in winners (26-25) in Wednesday's second-round match.

The tournament's No. 7 seed moves on to face fellow American Danielle Collins in Round 3.

This made everyone smile 😄

@serenawilliams x @MikiBuzarnescu#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/b7Qp24wv7g

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 2, 2021

Williams' outlook for the season's second major was a bit unsettled when she arrived in Paris. She'd only appeared in two WTA Tour events since reaching the Australian Open semifinals in February, and she lost two of her three matches in those clay-court tuneups.

The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion knocked off Irina-Camelia Begu in the first round, but it wasn't a total breeze as she required a first-set tiebreaker before easing to the finish line in the second set.

It was more of the same Wednesday. Williams appeared in control early on, but a break by the Romanian midway through the second set created some unexpected tension. She got the break back, only to drop her final service game of the set.

What a set point 😱@MikiBuzarnescu takes the second against Serena 7-5 and forces a decider!#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/kMqTZ6DSDw

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 2, 2021

Although Williams, who last captured the French Open title in 2015, recovered to win the third set, she hasn't looked anywhere close to top form in the major's initial stages.

"I've had enough rest in the past 16 months, so I should be totally ready to go for it," she told reporters after the first round about the busy schedule that starts with the stop at Roland Garros.

Serena skill 💯#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/YQde1YSTbv

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 2, 2021

Williams still has flashes of her previous brilliance—her serve was downright dominant at times throughout the win over Buzarnescu—but being able to maintain that level over the course of an entire match has been more difficult since her return to action in mid-May.

She'll look to find a little more consistency starting Friday against Collins. Williams won their only previous WTA Tour meeting in the quarterfinals of the Yarra Valley Classic in February, but the 27-year-old Florida native is coming off a win over Anhelina Kalinina in which she dropped just two games.

Williams' half of the draw is wide-open for her to make a deep run if she can find peak form.

Venus Williams says it's "definitely not easy to do press" for anyone in the wake of Naomi Osaka's withdrawal from the 2021 French Open.

Williams, a seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, was asked how she has coped with media attention and requirements in her 26-year tennis career.

"For me personally, how I deal with it was that I know every single person asking me a question can't play as well as I can and never will, so no matter what you say or write, you'll never light a candle to me," she told reporters Tuesday. "So that's how I deal with it, but each person deals with it differently."

Osaka announced Monday she was removing herself from the French Open field and taking "some time away from the court" after being fined $15,000 for not appearing for a press conference after her first-round win over Patricia Maria Tig.

The 23-year-old Japanese star said before the tournament she planned to skip the media sessions, citing mental health concerns.

Tennis' four Grand Slam tournaments released a joint statement Tuesday saying they'd "work alongside the players, the tours, the media and the broader tennis community to create meaningful improvements."

Venus' sister, Serena Williams, was also asked about Osaka's decision Monday and said her own press conferences over the years have made her "stronger":

"I feel for Naomi. Not everyone is the same. I'm thick. Other people are thin. Everyone is different and everyone handles things differently. You just have to let her handle it the way she wants to and the best way she thinks she can. That's the only thing I can say: I think she is doing the best she can."

The Grand Slams' statement didn't include a timetable for a potential reworking of media guidelines.

Serena Williams dispatched of Irina-Camelia Begu in straight sets during first-round play at the French Open on Monday. But it wasn't an easy, breezy win for the three-time Roland Garros champion. 

Williams needed a first-set tiebreaker before seizing control in the second set, winning 7-6 (6), 6-2. 

Williams registered five aces, won 15 of 19 net points and smashed 27 winners, to go along with 30 unforced errors, per RolandGarros.com. 

Signature Serena power 🔋#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/drSawZX5L2

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 31, 2021

Bringing the best for the night session 😍#RolandGarros | @serenawilliams pic.twitter.com/j4YIwpOHJR

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 31, 2021

Serena's game seems to be in first or second gear but she's competing very well.

Two big forehand swing volleys to fight back from 4-6 to 8-6 in the first set tiebreak over Begu to close out a roller coaster first set.#RG21

— Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) May 31, 2021

After battling through the first set, Serena Williams closes it out fairly smoothly, 7-6(6), 6-2 over Irina-Camelia Begu.

She's now an incredible 77-1 in Slam R1s in her career.

Serena faces another Romanian, Dr. Mihaela Buzarnescu, in the second round of #RG21.

— Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) May 31, 2021

The match also made a bit of history, as it was the first scheduled night session in the history of the tournament. 

It was a solid first step for Williams in her quest to tie Margaret Court at 24 Grand Slam titles. She's currently at 23, and that record is essentially the only career milestone she hasn't achieved in a historically incredible career. 

Williams already has earned the title of the greatest female player—and perhaps simply the greatest tennis player, period— of all time. Catching Court would simply be the cherry on top.

But her Roland Garros tuneup matches weren't exactly promising. She lost in the opening round of the Italian Open and the second round of the Emilia-Romagna Open. But her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, wasn't too concerned heading into the French Open. 

"I think it's always interesting to play matches because it gives you a clear vision of where you are, so that was good in that way because we know what she still needs to accomplish in order to be ready for Roland Garros," he said, per Raz Mirza of Sky Sports. "I'm not worried in general because if she does the job she will be ready. It's just about doing the job."

Top seeds Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal both advanced to the men's quarterfinals in the 2021 Italian Open on Thursday to remain on a potential collision course for the final.

In the women's bracket, No. 1 seed Ashleigh Barty cruised through to the quarterfinals with a straight-sets victory over Veronika Kudermetova, but another meeting with Aryna Sabalenka isn't in the cards as the 23-year-old rising star was upset by American teenager Coco Gauff.

Let's check out all of the scores from Thursday's singles matches at Foro Italico in Rome, which will be updated through the conclusion of play. That's followed by a recap of the day's top clay-court action.

---

Men's Results

(1) Novak Djokovic d. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina; 6-2, 6-1

(2) Rafael Nadal d. (13) Denis Shapovalov; 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3)

Lorenzo Sonego d. (4) Dominic Thiem; 6-4, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5)

(5) Stefanos Tsitsipas d. (9) Matteo Berrettini; 7-6 (3), 6-2

(6) Alexander Zverev d. Kei Nishikori; 4-6, 6-3, 6-4

(7) Andrey Rublev d. (10) Roberto Bautista Agut: 6-4, 6-4

Reilly Opelka d. Aslan Karatsev; 7-6 (6), 6-4

Federico Delbonis d. Felix Auger-Aliassime; 7-6 (3), 6-1

---

Women's Results

(1) Ashleigh Barty d. Veronika Kudermetova; 6-3, 6-3

(5) Elina Svitolina d. (12) Garbine Muguruza; 6-4, 6-2

Coco Gauff d. (7) Aryna Sabalenka; 7-5, 6-3

(9) Karolina Pliskova d. Vera Zvonareva; 7-5, 6-3

(15) Iga Swiatek d. Barbora Krejcikova; 3-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5

Petra Martic d. Nadia Podoroska; 3-6, 6-1, 6-2

Jessica Pegula d. Ekaterina Alexandrova; 6-2, 6-4

Jelena Ostapenko d. Angelique Kerber; 4-6, 6-3, 6-4

---

Day 6 Recap

Davidovich Fokina has produced some promising results throughout the clay-court season, including an upset Grigor Dimitrov of the first round in Rome, but he was no match for Djokovic on Thursday.

The defending Italian Open champion needed barely over an hour to advance on the strength of five breaks. It was a highly efficient performance, with the 33-year-old Serb winning 68 percent of the points on serve and 56 percent while returning.

"I thought I played well," Djokovic told reporters. "He started well and broke my serve in the first game. I made some errors, but I managed to break back right away and establish the control and consistency on the court. I think from the back of the court I was just a bit more solid than him."

He moves on to face Tsitsipas in the marquee match of the men's quarters.

A 15th quarter-final in 15 Rome appearances! 👏

Five-time champion @DjokerNole defeats Davidovich Fokina 6-2 6-1 in 70 minutes.#IBI21 pic.twitter.com/zwhzsfIpNQ

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) May 13, 2021

Nadal found himself down a set and trailing 3-0 in the second set before he finally started to find a groove. He won six of the next seven games to force a deciding set.

The King of Clay faced a match point in his last service game of the final set, but he saved the break point and proceeded to win the match in a tiebreak.

It was far from his best performance, as shown by Shapovalov's 12 aces, but Nadal came up big in the clutch to keep his pursuit of a 10th Italian Open title alive.

A true warrior 💪

🎥: @TennisTV | @RafaelNadal | #IBI21pic.twitter.com/Y2hiOeNTp0

— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 13, 2021

Barty has reached the final in her last two tournaments, the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix and the Madrid Open, and she's steamrolling in that direction again after breezing past Kudermetova.

The 2019 French Open champion has established herself as the favorite for this year's trip to Roland Garros with her recent form. That trend continued Thursday with nine aces and four breaks to avoid even a hint of third-round drama.

"Without a doubt, happy with how we were able to tactically move about that match today and kind of stick to what we hoped would work and be able to execute," Barty said.

Victory lap for 🇦🇺 @ashbarty as the fans are back in Rome 👋

The World No.1 is through to face Gauff in the @InteBNLdItalia quarterfinals! 🍿 pic.twitter.com/qtbKqMCHVf

— wta (@WTA) May 13, 2021

Two Americans, Gauff and Pegula, were among the other notable winners on the women's side.

The Italian Open continues Friday with the quarterfinals in both draws. The champions will be crowned Sunday.

Serena Williams encountered a stumbling block on her road to the French Open, while Rafael Nadal is moving on to add to what's already a record title haul in Rome.

Both stars were in action Wednesday at the 2021 Italian Open, with the event serving as one of the final tune-ups before players travel to Paris for the second Grand Slam of the season.

 

Men's Singles Results

No. 1 Rafael Nadal def. Jannik Sinner 7-5, 6-4

Aslan Karatsev def. No. 3 Daniil Medvedev 6-2, 6-4

No. 4 Dominic Thiem def. Marton Fucsovics 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-0

No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas def. Marin Cilic 7-5, 6-2

No. 6 Alexander Zverev def. Hugo Dellien 6-2, 6-2

No. 7 Andrey Rublev def. Jan-Lennard Struff 6-7(1), 6-1, 6-4

No. 9 Matteo Berrettini def. John Millman 6-4, 6-2

No. 10 Roberto Bautista Agut def. Cristian Garin 7-6(5), 6-3

Federico Delbonis def. No. 12 David Goffin 6-2, 6-1

No. 13 Denis Shapovalov def. Stefano Travaglia 7-6(2), 6-3

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina def. Cameron Norrie 6-2, 6-3

Lorenzo Sonego def. Gianluca Mager 6-4, 6-4

 

Women's Singles Results

No. 1 Ashleigh Barty def. Yaroslava Shvedova 6-4, 6-1

Jessica Pegula def. No. 2 Naomi Osaka 7-6(2), 6-2 

Angelique Kerber def. No. 3 Simona Halep 1-6, 3-3(ret.)

Barbora Krejcikova def. No. 4 Sofia Kenin 6-1, 6-4

No. 5 Elina Svitolina def. Amanda Anisimova 2-6, 6-3, 6-4

No. 7 Aryna Sabalenka def. Sara Sorribes Tormo 7-5, 6-1

Nadia Podoroska def. No. 8 Serena Williams 7-6(6), 7-5

No. 9 Karolina Pliskova def. Anastasija Sevastova 6-2, 6-3 

Vera Zvonareva def. No. 11 Petra Kvitova 6-4, 3-6, 6-4

No. 12 Garbine Muguruza def. Bernarda Pera 2-6, 6-0, 7-5 

Ekaterina Alexandrova def. No. 13 Jennifer Brady (walkover)

No. 15 Iga Swiatek def. Madison Keys 7-5, 6-1

Petra Martic def. Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 6-3

Veronika Kudermetova def. Caroline Garcia 6-4, 6-4

Coco Gauff def. Maria Sakkari 6-1, 1-6, 6-1

Jelena Ostapenko def. Ajla Tomljanovic 6-2, 7-6(3) 

 

Wednesday Recap

Wednesday wasn't a good time to be a seeded player in the women's singles draw. Williams was one of four in the top 10 to exit the tournament, though Simona Halep's defeat was due to a calf injury.

Her status for the French Open might be in doubt as well as the 2018 champion announced she has a tear in her left calf:

but I will do everything I can to take care of the injury and be back as soon as possible. Thanks so much for your support and I’ll keep you posted on my progress 🙏

— Simona Halep (@Simona_Halep) May 12, 2021

Elsewhere, Sofia Kenin was unable to rebound from a poor first set and lost to Barbora Krejcikova. The opposite was true of Naomi Osaka, who went to a first-set tiebreaker with Jessica Pegula and then wilted in the second.

One poor result isn't necessarily a cause for concern ahead of a major tournament. For Williams, however, her performance Wednesday might be a bad omen heading into Roland Garros.

The 39-year-old doesn't keep up a full-time schedule. The Italian Open was her first WTA event since the Australian Open in February. A level of rust was apparent as she committed 18 unforced errors in the second set alone, per WTATennis.com. 

"I have been training for months, but it feels definitely different on clay to make that last adjustment," Williams said after the match. "Just filling out the game, finding the rhythm. Even sliding and confidence with that, with movement. ... That's always like a little struggle in the first two matches, and then I'm raring to go."

While a three-time French Open champion, Paris is where Williams has historically struggled the most. Her last quarterfinal appearance was in 2016. Nobody will count her out completely, but the absence of competitive matches relative to her competitors is likely to be an issue:

Serena Williams loses to Podoroska, 7-6, 7-5. The conundrum for Serena is trying to be a part-time tour player while trying to contend in majors. One match in four months going into Roland Garros isn’t going to cut it. She needs more reps.

— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) May 12, 2021

The men's draw didn't provide anywhere near the same kind of surprises. Aslan Karatsev sent No. 3 Daniil Medvedev packing. Fourth-seeded Dominic Thiem dropped his first set against Marton Fucsovics and needed a tiebreaker to stay alive in the second before rolling to victory in the third.

Nadal encountered some stiff resistance from Jannik Sinner.

Sinner broke the 20-time Grand Slam champion's serve in the first set, which set the tone in a match where neither player could enjoy a lead for very long. Nadal immediately broke back in the second game, and the reverse happened across the fifth and sixth games.

Down 5-6 and serving to force a tiebreaker, Sinner successfully fought off three break-point opportunities before Nadal took the set.

The 19-year-old Italian jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the second frame before Nadal responded with a pair of service breaks to reel off four straight games.

THAT was a match! 👏

🎥: @TennisTV | @RafaelNadal | @janniksin | #IBI21pic.twitter.com/WpNRvNQHoo

— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 12, 2021

The 34-year-old will meet No. 13 Denis Shapovalov in the third round on Thursday, so the road to a 10th Italian Open triumph won't get any easier from here.

The Miami Open is in full swing this year after the tournament was canceled in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On the women's side, some of the game's biggest names took center stage in the round of 64, although a handful of them were nearly upset by some fierce challengers.

The men's side rolled through the remainder of the round of 128. The draw's premier players will begin taking the court Friday for the round of 64.

Here's a look at all the singles results from Thursday at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, along with some of the day's notable storylines from the women's draw.

     

WTA Results (Singles): Round of 64

No. 1 Ashleigh Barty def. Kristina Kucova: 6-3, 4-6, 7-5

No. 3 Simona Halep def. Caroline Garcia: 3-6, 6-4, 6-0

No. 5 Elina Svitolina def. Shelby Rogers: 3-6, 7-5, 6-3

No. 7 Aryna Sabalenka def. Tsvetana Pironkova: 0-6, 6-3, 7-6 (9)

No. 9 Petra Kvitova def. Alize Cornet: 6-0, 6-4

No. 11 Belinda Bencic def. Zarina Diyas: 6-2, 6-1

No. 15 Iga Swiatek def. Barbora Krejcikova: 6-4, 6-2

No. 17 Johanna Konta: Magda Linette: 6-4, 7-5

Ana Konjuh def. No. 18 Madison Keys: 6-4, 6-2

No. 19 Marketa Vondrousova def. Qiang Wang: 6-4, 6-4

No. 24 Angelique Kerber def. Renata Zarazua: 6-0, 6-0

No. 30 Ekaterina Alexandrova def. Nadia Podoroska: 6-0, 6-4

Anastasija Sevastova def. No. 31 Cori Gauff: 1-6, 6-2, 6-3

No. 32 Veronika Kudermetova def. Danielle Collins: 6-3, 6-2

Jelena Ostapenko def. Kirsten Flipkins: 6-2, 5-7, 6-3

Scores via WTA Tour website.

       

ATP Results (Singles): Round of 128

Daniel Elahi Galan def. Thiago Seyboth Wild: 6-3, 6-4

Marin Cilic def. Federico Coria: 6-3, 2-6, 6-4

Damir Dzumhur def. Kevin Anderson: 7-6 (6), 7-5

Bjorn Fratangelo def. Fernando Verdasco: 6-4, 6-4

Ilya Ivashka def. Soonwoo Kwon: 7-6 (4), 6-7 (4), 7-6 (3)

Miomir Kecmanovic def. Liam Broady: 7-5, 6-7 (5), 6-1

Thanasi Kokkinakis def. Shintaro Mochizuki: 6-3, 6-3

Denis Kudla def. Jeremy Chardy: 3-6, 6-3, 6-4

Mikhail Kukushkin def. Jack Draper: 7-5, 0-0 (Retired)

Tennys Sandgren def. Pedro Martinez: 6-4, 2-0 (Retired)

Jordan Thompson def. Federico Delbonis: 7-6 (6), 6-4

Yasutaka Uchiyama def. Salvatore Caruso: 6-3, 6-4

Sebastian Korda def. Radu Albot: 6-3, 6-0

Aljaz Bedene def. Thomas Fabbiano: 7-6 (5), 1-6, 6-3

Joao Sousa def. Christopher O'Connell: 7-6 (6), 6-7 (8), 7-5

Lorenzo Musetti def. Michael Mmoh: 6-4, 6-4

Scores via ATP Tour website.

    

Konjuh Scores Upset of the Day

The upset of the day went to Ana Konjuh, who defeated No. 18 Madison Keys 6-4, 6-2.

The comeback continues 💪@anakonjuh is into Round 3 with a first Top 20 win since 2017!#MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/nrDaMmjQg1

— wta (@WTA) March 25, 2021

Konjuh's serve was on point, as she won 22-of-32 points on her first serve and 13-of-24 on her second. Keys did not have as much success, converting on 20-of-35 first serves and 6-of-19 second serves.

The fearless Konjuh also executed this fantastic shot at the net:

Now that's what you call 𝘢𝘨𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘷𝘦 net play 😅@anakonjuh | #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/cQt5cvWPxD

— wta (@WTA) March 25, 2021

Konjuh lost that game, but she held serve and held on to win the first set.

Four elbow surgeries have prevented Konjuh from reaching her lofty ceiling, and she hasn't played much at all over the past three years.

However, Konjuh looks healthy and ready to shake up the WTA landscape after her dominant straight-set win.

         

Double Bagel for Angelique Kerber

Angelique Kerber won 58 of a possible 87 points en route to shutting out Rena Zarazua in the round of 64 on Thursday.

Zarazua forced three break points in the first game of the first set but ended up losing after an 11-point game.

It was all Kerber from there. The three-time major winner converted on 6-of-7 break point opportunities, and Zarazua was only able to convert on 2-of-14 second serves.

Kerber's double bagel was the second of her WTA career. She also managed one against Carina Witthoeft at Wimbledon in 2015.

Kerber will now face two-time Grand Slam winner Victoria Azarenka in a potentially epic third-round matchup.

    

Four Top-10 Players Get Taken To Third Sets

No. 1 Ashleigh Barty, No. 3 Simona Halep, No. 5 Elina Svitolina and No. 7 Aryna Sabalenka all had round-of-64 scares but were able to survive and advance.

Barty had a battle with Kristina Kucova and even found herself down 4-1 in the second set. However, the world No. 1 pulled through by breaking Kucova twice and then holding on for dear life when serving for the match up 6-5 in the third.

The defending Miami Open champion found herself down 0-40 while serving for the match but then rolled off five straight points for the victory.

Defending champ mentality 👉🧠

Top seed @ashbarty saves a match point and escapes Kucova to reach the third round!#MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/LTUCFVTjE1

— wta (@WTA) March 25, 2021

Halep found herself down a set early after a great first-set performance from Caroline Garcia, who finished the day with five aces.

Garcia then earned a break in the first game of the second set, and Halep soon found herself down 3-1. It was all Halep from there, though, as she won 11 of the final 12 games to secure the victory.

7️⃣ straight games! 🤩@Simona_Halep took full control of the final set to outlast Garcia.#MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/lEsrCFJ8pO

— wta (@WTA) March 25, 2021

Halep also secured a milestone with the win:

4️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ main draw match wins 😮💪@MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/Ru5U92dY7d

— Simona Halep (@Simona_Halep) March 26, 2021

Svitolina lived on the edge against Shelby Rogers, falling behind a set before enduring an arduous second set that featured a total of seven break point winners. The serving player notably failed to win the first four games of the second set.

Rogers then found herself on her heels down 6-5 and serving, warding off three break points just to stay alive. Svitolina finished her off after a 10-point game.

Rogers broke Svitolina to start the third set, but the No. 5 player in this tournament then won six of the final eight games to secure a spot in the Round of 32.

No top-10 player was on the brink more than No. 7 Aryna Sabalenka, who was on the wrong end of a first-set bagel against Tsvetana Pironkova.

The challenger won all eight of her first-serve points and forced six break-point chances in total. Meanwhile, Sabalenka only converted on 6-of-15 first-serve points.

Sabalenka fell behind 3-1 in the second set but won five straight games to force a third set. Both players broke their opponent twice each to force a tiebreaker.

Once there, Pironkova had two match-point chances (serving on one) but could not close out. Sabalenka had three match points that did not go her way but finished Pironkova on the fourth to move on.

Sabalenka is now 4-of-4 on tiebreakers this season.

A Buffalo, New York, radio host was fired Wednesday only hours after making racist comments about Serena Williams, Halle Berry and Gayle King.

Rob Lederman of 97 Rock was let go following his comments while co-hosts Rich Gaenzler and Chris Klein remain suspended by station operator Cumulus Media. Additionally, Gaenzler was fired from his role as the in-arena host for the Buffalo Sabres and Buffalo Bandits lacrosse team, according to TMZ Sports.

Lederman compared his preferred toast to the skin tones of Williams, Berry and King. As the hosts were mentioning what levels their toasters were set to, Lederman took the conversation in an ugly direction.

"I may get into trouble for this," Lederman can be heard saying, per audio obtained by TMZ. "I have them [toaster settings] to the attractiveness of women that I find to be attractive."

He then compared the skin tones of various celebrities to how he likes his toast.

Some advertisers quickly pulled their spots from the radio station.

A statement from Roswell Park: pic.twitter.com/X5ThVOmzYr

— Roswell Park (@RoswellPark) March 24, 2021

"We apologize, and deeply regret the incident," Cumulus said in a statement. "Cumulus Media operates from a clearly defined set of programming principles and there is no question that Rob Lederman's comments made on The Morning Bull Show are in direct violation of those principles."

Pegula Sports & Entertainment released its own statement severing ties with Gaenzler early Wednesday evening.

pic.twitter.com/oz4GOqXIMC

— Pegula Sports & Entertainment (@PegulaSE) March 24, 2021

Speaking to Tim O'Shei of the Buffalo News, Lederman apologized to "anybody that would be hurt" by his comments and said he hopes to learn from this.

"I never saw myself as anything close to even thinking a racist thought," Lederman said. "It's just not who I am. So when I heard that, and heard how it sounded, I was like, 'Oh, my God, that sounds terrible.' Now, can I take back those words? No. If you listen to them, were they meant to be hurtful? Absolutely not."