Dimitrov leaves Alcaraz in the dust to get Miami final four spot

Carlos Alcaraz’s aspirations for a Sunshine Double were dashed in dramatic fashion as the top-seeded Spaniard suffered a 6-2 6-4 defeat on Thursday to Grigor Dimitrov, who advances to face Alexander Zverev in the Miami Open semi-finals.

Dimitrov, the Bulgarian 11th seed, dominated the match by winning 77% of his first-serve points, a stark comparison to Alcaraz’s 56%. He also showcased his resilience by saving four out of five break points and breaking the Spaniard’s serve four times throughout the 92-minute encounter.

The loss came as a blow to Alcaraz, who entered Miami with high confidence following his recent triumph at the Indian Wells tournament just 11 days ago. Despite his strong start, Alcaraz fell short of becoming the first player since Roger Federer in 2017 to secure the Sunshine Double.

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Grigor Dimitrov now sets his sights on the semi-finals, where he will face German fourth seed Alexander Zverev. Zverev secured his spot by overcoming challenging conditions to defeat Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan 6-3 7-5 in the day’s earlier match on the Stadium court.