Ice-cold Jakub Mensik makes history: Stuns Taylor Fritz to reach first Masters 1000 final at Miami Open

Jakub Mensik continues to shine with a huge victory over World No. 4 Taylor Fritz, winning 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-6(4) to reach his first Masters 1000 final. The 19-year-old has been the biggest surprise of the week, securing his career-best ranking as World No. 31, and now sets his sights on Novak Djokovic in a bid to complete the job in Miami.

One of the Czech's biggest weapons was his impeccable serve, firing 24 aces, but he also showed great courage in going for the crucial points. Unfazed by his opponent’s ranking, Mensik earns the biggest win of his career, improving his record against top-10 players to 7-5.

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Fearless Mensik takes opening set

A tight opening set saw Mensik looking more solid on serve, firing 10 aces compared to Fritz’s five. The 19-year-old showed no signs of inexperience on such a big stage, confidently going toe-to-toe with the World No. 4. Neither player was willing to give up their serve, and no break points were played throughout the set.

Fritz was serving first, putting pressure on Mensik at 4-5 and 5-6, but the Czech responded with clutch aces and effective first serves. The set went into a tiebreak, where Mensik displayed remarkable composure, courageously stepping forward, approaching the net, and taking the initiative in the rallies.

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Deservedly, Mensik claimed the tiebreak 7-6(4), adding to his impressive career record in these situations—having played 66 tiebreaks, winning 52 and losing only 14. The World No. 54 landed 71% of his first serves, winning 85% of them, while Fritz had a 66% first-serve percentage, winning 81% of those points.

Fritz fights back: American levels the match

Taylor Fritz started strong, securing an early break and quickly consolidating for a 2-0 lead. The American dictated play, but Mensik found ways to keep the ball in play longer than Fritz preferred, forcing the fourth seed into uncharacteristic errors when trying to hit big shots.

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However, Fritz managed to hold serve without facing a single break point. Despite Mensik's efforts to dictate the tempo, the American's superior serving proved decisive as he closed out the set 6-4 without any additional breaks. Fritz won 70% of his service points, while Mensik trailed with 64%. The Czech also made more mistakes, committing 15 unforced errors compared to Fritz’s nine.

Ice-cold Mensik outduels Fritz in third-set tiebreak 

At the start of the third set, the tension was palpable on the court, though both players held their serves. With the score at 2-1 in Mensik’s favour, he had a couple of break opportunities, but Fritz fought back from 15-40 with four consecutive points. It was clear that the match was finely balanced and would be decided by key moments.

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Mensik never lost his composure on serve and played slightly better than the American. However, Fritz once again showed his quality under pressure. At 5-4, tensions rose when Fritz found himself at 30-30 on serve. After a couple of long exchanges, he managed to stay in the match and level at 5-5.

Everything came down to the tiebreak, where Mensik displayed incredible composure, proving to be the better player in the decisive moments. He sealed the victory 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-6(4), further improving his remarkable tiebreak record to 53-14.

Now, he faces one final battle for the title—against none other than 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, who is chasing his seventh Miami Open crown and the 100th title of his career. Will the confidence from a tight semifinal win be enough to take down the Serbian legend?

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