American Round-up: Keys and Paul are stunned, Anisimova and Korda lead the way

After the third round at the Miami Open, more Americans joined the Round of 16, with Jessica Pegula and Amanda Anisimova leading the charge. On Sunday, there were some surprises for the locals, including an upset as Sebastian Korda defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas.

The unexpected eliminations were for the 2025 Australian Open champion Madison Keys (No. 5), who was defeated by the surprising Alexandra Eala, ranked No. 134. Meanwhile, Tommy Paul (No. 12) was defeated by Argentine Francisco Cerundolo.

The first surprise of the day came from Filipino Alexandra Eala, who defeated one of the top favorites, World No. 5 Madison Keys, 6-4, 6-2. The 19-year-old is having the best performance of her career after defeating two Grand Slam champions in succession (previously World No. 25 Jelena Ostapenko) and will make her debut in the fourth round of a WTA 1000. Despite the loss, Keys holds an impressive 19-3 record in 2025.

Later, there was another disappointment for the locals when the impressive McCartney Kessler was forced to retire during her match against Emma Raducanu. The 2021 US Open champion was dominating the match 6-1, 3-0 when Kessler retired due to physical discomfort. Kessler had just defeated Linda Noskova (No. 30), but unfortunately, her physical condition failed her against Raducanu.

Jessica Pegula (No. 4) provided the first bright spot for the Americans, defeating Russian Anna Kalinskaya (No. 32 seed) in a tough battle that was decided by a third-set tiebreaker. The 2024 US Open runner-up showcased her class at the most critical moment and sealed the victory 6-7(3), 6-2, 7-6(2). Pegula advanced to the Round of 16, where she will face Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk (No. 23).

In what was probably one of the most exciting matches of the day, Amanda Anisimova – 2023 WTA 1000 Qatar Open champion – faced Mirra Andreeva, the recent champion of the last two WTA 1000 events in Dubai and Indian Wells. The teenager had won 13 consecutive matches, but in a controversial clash, Anisimova earned a notable victory 7-6(5), 2-6, 6-3. The day’s controversy came when Anisimova stopped play due to a blister during a service game by Andreeva, which visibly upset the 17-year-old and her coach, Conchita Martínez.

Brandon Nakashima was the first local male player to take the court on Sunday and faced Belgian David Goffin, a huge surprise in the third round after eliminating World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz. Nakashima didn’t let the experienced Belgian intimidate him and won in three sets, 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3. The 23-year-old continues his solid form with 9 wins in his last 12 matches and will face 2024 runner-up Grigor Dimitrov (No. 14 seed) on Tuesday.

His compatriot Sebastian Korda had a tough challenge against World No. 10 Stefanos Tsitsipas, with whom he had only one previous encounter (a Tsitsipas victory). The American earned his 10th victory over a top-10 player and his first of the year. Additionally, he reached 30 wins in Masters 1000 tournaments.

Finally, in the last match of the day, American No. 2 Tommy Paul couldn’t overcome an inspired Francisco Cerundolo, losing 2-6, 6-7. The Argentine has been in great form in recent months, having reached the quarterfinals at Indian Wells a couple of weeks ago and is now enjoying another strong run in the Sunshine Double. Paul had the chance to return to the top-10 this week, but his elimination leaves him at World No. 13 for now, although he could drop a few more positions depending on the results in the coming days.