World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz suffered a shock third-round exit at the Miami Open, going down 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 to Sebastian Korda in a gripping two-hour, 14-minute contest on Sunday.
Korda set the tone early, dictating play with aggressive shot-making and a strong serve to take the opening set. He looked poised to wrap up the match in straight sets when he led 5-3 in the second, but a sudden dip saw him broken at love, allowing Alcaraz to claw his way back and force a decider.
Rather than unravel, Korda responded with composure. The 25-year-old broke for 4-3 in the third set and maintained his level under pressure, sealing the biggest win of his career with an unreturnable serve on his second match point. “It feels great. I took the scenic route, that’s for sure,” Korda said courtside. “There was a bit more stress than I would have liked, but I’m proud of how I stayed with it and finished strong.”
Korda’s all-round display stood out — he fired 12 aces and mixed up his approach effectively, including timely serve-and-volley plays, to keep Alcaraz off balance. Even after letting the second set slip, he refused to retreat and continued to take the initiative. Alcaraz, meanwhile, struggled for rhythm at key moments, with uncharacteristic errors off the forehand side proving costly in the decider.
The Spaniard had entered the tournament in strong form, having already lifted the Australian Open earlier this year to complete a career Grand Slam. His only prior defeat this season had come against Daniil Medvedev at Indian Wells. A former Miami champion — having won the title in 2022 as a teenager — Alcaraz has now endured consecutive early exits at the event, following a second-round loss last year.
The defeat shifts his focus to the upcoming clay swing, starting with the Monte-Carlo Masters.
Korda, seeded 32nd, moves into the round of 16, where he will face either Karen Khachanov or Martin Landaluce as he looks to build on a breakthrough victory.
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