A Not So Surprising Surprise in Miami

The surprises in professional tennis competition since the beginning of the year have continued into the third month of 2025. In the WTA/ATP Masters 1000 Miami tournament, there are unexpected names on the list of quarterfinalists.

In the women's singles competition, Alexandra Eala, Emma Raducanu, and Magda Linette are among the seeded players, namely Aryna Sabalenka (1), Iga Swiatek (2), Jessica Pegula (4), Jasmine Paolini (6), and Zheng Qin Wen (9).

In men's singles, all of the previous week's Indian Wells Masters semifinalists were eliminated in their opening round matches after receiving a first-round bye. They were Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, Holger Rune, and Jack Draper (Indian Wells Masters champion).

However, the surprise created by David Goffin and Jaime Munar after eliminating Alcaraz and Medvedev did not last long. They were eliminated in the third round. The top five seeds who remain and will compete in the quarterfinals are Alexander Zverev (1), Taylor Fritz (3), Novak Djokovic (4), and Casper Ruud (5).

The male tennis player who has garnered attention from the start is the 18-year-old athlete, Joao Fonseca. The Brazilian tennis player competed in the Miami Masters, which is only his third Masters 1000 tournament following the Madrid Masters 2024 and Indian Wells Masters 2025.

Fonseca made a surprise by defeating the 19th seed, Ugo Humbert, in the second round, but his progress was halted by Alex de Minaur in the fourth round on Monday (24/3/2025) local time. Fonseca lost to the 10th seed with a score of 7-5, 5-7, 3-6. Despite the loss, the 2024 ATP Next Gen Finals champion achieved his furthest progress in a high-level tournament by reaching the third round.

Unlike Fonseca, the young woman from the Philippines, Eala, will experience competition in a higher phase, namely the quarter-finals. The 19-year-old tennis player won the fourth round without competing after Paula Badosa (10) withdrew (walkover/WO) due to a waist injury.

After defeating two Grand Slam champions, Jelena Ostapenko (2017 French Open champion) in the second round, and Madison Keys (2025 Australian Open champion), Eala will face another Grand Slam titleholder, Swiatek. The second seed advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating Elina Svitolina 7-6 (5), 6-3 in the fourth round, which concluded early Tuesday local time.

"My service was not very good in the first set. After that, I tried to be more patient in the second set because Elina always put pressure," commented Swiatek.

Swiatek still has the chance to win the WTA Miami for the second time after 2022. Not only that, the 23-year-old tennis player still has the chance to win her first title since the French Open in June 2024.

Swiatek's performance in the four tournaments before WTA Miami was actually not too bad. At the Australian Open, for example, she was dominant in five rounds, from the first round to the quarterfinals, losing only 16 games. However, Swiatek was eliminated by Keys in the semifinals.

A similar situation occurred at WTA Indian Wells. Swiatek won the second round through to the quarterfinals by losing only 12 games. She was the favorite to win for the third time. However, her journey was stopped by Andreeva in the semifinals who went on to win the title.

Andreeva also came to Miami with two consecutive WTA 1000 titles, namely from Dubai and Indian Wells. However, Andreeva could not continue her surprise in Miami because she lost to Amanda Anisimova in the third round. However, after that, Anisimova was eliminated by Emma Raducanu 1-6, 3-6 in the fourth round. The opponent who awaits Raducanu in the quarterfinals is Pegula.

I can return every shot, I have a very strong desire to win. I think those are some of the factors that have been missing from me for the last few months, even the last few years.

Raducanu is not actually a new face. She made a surprise by winning the 2021 US Open Grand Slam as a qualifier at the age of 19. However, Raducanu has struggled to develop. There has been no title for Raducanu since the US Open which is still her only WTA title.

The Briton then changed coaches to find his best side, and he found it again in Miami, reaching the quarter-finals.

Raducanu was also very happy to be able to compete again with a high competitive spirit. "I can return every shot, I have a very high desire to win. I think, those are some of the factors that have been missing from me for the last few months, even, the last few years," said Raducanu, whose best achievements since winning the 2021 US Open were appearing in the fourth round of a Grand Slam and the semifinals of the WTA 500 level.

The emergence of Raducanu and Eala in the quarterfinals and the exit of Alcaraz and Medvedev in the second round in Miami are part of a professional tennis competition that has been very open since the beginning of the year, including at major tournaments. The Australian Open, WTA 1000 Doha, Dubai and Indian Wells produced different champions, namely Keys, Anisimova and Andreeva.

In the men's singles, Jack Draper took advantage of the absence of world number one Jannik Sinner to win the Indian Wells title. Sinner's absence, due to a doping suspension, also meant that Zverev and Alcaraz failed to take their place at the top of the world rankings due to their poor results.

So the unexpected results in the men's and women's tennis competitions in Miami are not really that surprising. Champions can come and go quickly, depending on a player's performance in the week of the tournament, not on their long-term consistency. (AFP)