MIAMI — The first four days of the Miami Open unfolded with less chaos than expected, unlike the unpredictable March Madness.
While surprises can be exciting and change is constant, most female favorites maintained their form, contrasting with the men`s side where all four Indian Wells semifinalists lost their opening matches in South Florida.
However, Sunday witnessed a significant upset as Filipino teenager Alexandra Eala stunned Australian Open champion Madison Keys in straight sets. This victory is a major achievement, with Eala now having won more main-draw matches in Miami than any other player from the Philippines in the Open Era. Eala`s WTA ranking was 135 spots below Keys` No. 5 ranking.
Despite this upset, by Sunday`s end, the Sweet 16 lineup looked largely predictable.
Five of the Top 6 seeds – Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, and Jasmine Paolini – are still in contention. Defending champion Danielle Collins, four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka, and 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu also remain in the tournament.
All eight Round of 16 matches are scheduled for Monday, a day of high anticipation for tennis fans.
For those following the tournament, and especially those who haven’t, here’s Courtside Changeover, a recap of the first week and a preview of what’s ahead:
Week 1 Superlatives
Serving up a clean shutout
Coco Gauff`s 6-0, 6-0 victory over Sofia Kenin was her second career `double bagel` at the tour level. She followed this with a 6-2, 6-4 win against Maria Sakkari. Gauff`s strategy? Not focusing on achieving shutouts.
“I didn’t want to think about it,” Gauff said, “because this is a one-every-couple-years type occurrence.”
Match of the Week
Naomi Osaka secured a hard-fought victory against qualifier Hailey Baptiste in the third round, winning 7-6 (6), 3-6, 6-4. The match, lasting nearly three hours, was decided by a narrow margin of points, with Osaka winning 112 to Baptiste`s 110.
“This year I’ve played already a couple scrappy matches,” Osaka said. “I think the fight kind of got me over it. I realized you need to play a lot of matches like that to be, I guess, one of the great ones.”
Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, shows signs of returning to top form after her maternity leave.
Breathtaking breakthrough
Amidst Eala`s upset, 18-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko achieved her first tour-level win against Camila Osorio in the first round. Although she lost to Paula Badosa in a close three-set match, Mboko boasts an impressive 28-2 record this year, including five ITF titles.
Point of the tournament
A remarkable point from Viktoriya Tomova against World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.
Numbers don’t lie
Best stat (by far)
Data from Nicolò Tonato of Stats Perform highlights that the match between Emma Navarro and Emma Raducanu was the first time since 2008 at the Miami Open that two players with the same first name competed against each other (previously Elena Vesnina and Elena Likhovtseva).
Honorable mention: Iga Swiatek is the first player to reach the Round of 16 in 25 consecutive WTA 1000 events since 2009.
Out of service
Elena Rybakina, despite winning 22 consecutive service points against Ashlyn Krueger, including a perfect second set on serve, still lost the match.
Retro moment
Thirteen years after their Australian Open junior final, Taylor Townsend and Yulia Putintseva played again in Miami, with Townsend winning 7-6 (2), 1-6, 6-1, mirroring a similarly scored previous match.
An ode to Andreeva
Quote of the Week
“I still can’t believe that it happened so fast because it was one of my dreams. Now that it already happened, I feel like … what am I supposed to do now?” — Mirra Andreeva on her rapid rise
But …
Mirra Andreeva`s impressive run ended with a loss to Amanda Anisimova in a nearly three-hour match on Sunday night.
Still …
Despite her exit from Miami, Andreeva celebrated a unique victory last week: recognition from LeBron James.
The 17-year-old has often quoted LeBron`s mindset and after defeating Aryna Sabalenka in Indian Wells, LeBron acknowledged her on Instagram, saying: “Congratulations! Happy to have helped. But honestly, YOU did THAT!! All your hard work, drive, and dedication toward your craft. KEEP GOING! Strive for greatness.”
Andreeva expressed her excitement, planning to print and frame LeBron`s message, highlighting the rarity of such recognition.
It was a remarkable week for Andreeva, even without a tournament win.
Odds, ends & aces
An (underhanded) surprise
Leading 6-2, 5-1 and on match point, Marta Kostyuk surprised Anna Blinkova with an underarm serve ace to win the match.
Living on the edge
Kimberly Birrell and Alycia Parks both won their first-round matches after saving match points against Anastasia Potapova and Varvara Gracheva, respectively.
Ask me again in 10 years
Despite the current prominence of mothers on the WTA Tour, Aryna Sabalenka humorously dismissed any immediate plans to join them, suggesting maybe in “five, seven, 10 years, maybe — who knows when.”
Hut-hut!
Emma Raducanu: Showing signs of resurgence with three Miami Open wins, Raducanu’s improved form might be linked to a new warmup routine involving football tosses with her trainer Yutaka Nakamura.
“My trainer has been teaching me, because he’s lived in America and knows how to throw it really well,” Raducanu reports. “I have just been working on tightening the spiral a little bit.”
When asked if she could assist the Miami Dolphins, Raducanu laughed it off.
Raducanu advanced after McCartney Kessler retired in their third-round match.
Looking ahead: Monday’s blockbuster schedule
Monday at the Miami Open promises to be thrilling, featuring matches between Grand Slam champions and rising stars:
No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka vs. No. 14 Danielle Collins
No. 2 Iga Swiatek vs. No. 22 Elina Svitolina
No. 3 Coco Gauff vs. Magda Linette
No. 4 Jessica Pegula vs. No. 23 Marta Kostyuk
No. 6 Jasmine Paolini vs. Naomi Osaka
No. 9 Zheng Qinwen vs. Ashlyn Krueger
No. 10 Paula Badosa vs. Alexandra Eala
No. 17 Amanda Anisimova vs. Emma Raducanu
Which brings us to this question
Jasper Hawthorne 
Dominic Ashworth