Highs and lows for Americans: Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz advanced as Ben Shelton tumbles

It was a great day for the Americans at the Miami Open, with Frances Tiafoe, Taylor Fritz, Coco Gauff, and Danielle Collins all securing solid victories. The favourites delivered as expected, though there was still room for surprises.

The biggest shock came when 13th seed Ben Shelton was upset by Hong Kong’s Coleman Wong, in what was the day’s most unexpected result. On the women’s side, Ashlyn Krueger pulled off a surprise win over 2021 US Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez in straight sets, once again knocking out a big name in the draw.

World No. 98 Hailey Baptiste faced a tough challenge against former World No. 1 Naomi Osaka. Despite a strong performance, it wasn’t enough to claim the win. The Japanese star trailed 2-4 in the third set but put together a streak of games to secure a 7-6, 3-6, 6-4 victory, advancing to the fourth round.

Similarly, Taylor Townsend had a challenging task against 9th seed Zheng Qinwen, who is looking better with every match, winning five of her last six. The Paris 2024 gold medallist boasted an impressive 88% first-serve points won, making it impossible for Townsend to keep up with a player emerging as a title contender.

The local wins were led by World No. 3 Coco Gauff, who defeated Maria Sakkari for the second consecutive tournament. The Greek seemed to have a better chance this time after a strong second set but couldn’t maintain her momentum, falling 2-6, 4-6.

Defending champion Danielle Collins had to work harder to eliminate Switzerland’s Rebeka Masarova — a qualifier — in a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 battle. Collins now faces World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka on Monday. They’ve played six times before, with Sabalenka winning every encounter.

The day’s biggest news came from Ashlyn Krueger, who took down 26th seed Leylah Fernandez 6-1, 7-5, reaching the Round of 16 at a WTA 1000 event for the first time in her career. The 20-year-old continues her growth on tour, claiming her 15th win of the season. She had already knocked out 7th seed Elena Rybakina and now faces Zheng Qinwen in the fourth round, looking to avenge her compatriot Townsend.

On the men’s side, the biggest disappointment was 13th seed Ben Shelton’s first-round exit at the hands of Hong Kong’s Coleman Wong. The 20-year-old — a product of the Rafa Nadal Academy — secured his first Masters 1000 victories in Miami after just a handful of ATP appearances, earning the biggest win of his career against Shelton 7-6, 2-6, 7-6. Despite the local crowd’s disappointment, Wong played at a phenomenal level, with the final tiebreak decided by the smallest of margins.

Taylor Fritz, however, delivered a win for the home fans. The World No. 3 cruised past Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego in straight sets to advance to the third round. Fritz recently revealed he’s still dealing with an abdominal injury, leaving questions about his fitness ahead of his next match against Denis Shapovalov.

Frances Tiafoe also celebrated on Saturday, beating the always-tough Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-5, 7-6. The American had lost to the Spaniard a few weeks ago at the Mexican Open. Big Foe will now try to break a negative streak, having not won back-to-back matches since reaching the US Open semi-finals. His next rival is 20-year-old Arthur Fils (17th seed).

The men’s biggest surprise came from Reilly Opelka, who upset recent Indian Wells finalist Holger Rune, the 11th seed. The former World No. 17 had already shown glimpses of his form earlier this year when he reached the Brisbane International final, defeating Novak Djokovic along the way. Opelka is now on the verge of returning to the top 100 but must first overcome Czech Tomas Machac (20th seed) in the third round.