Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka crashed out of Miami Open in the quarter-finals on a day of upsets that also saw top-seeded Daniil Medvedev ousted.
Seventh-seeded Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut beat Medvedev 6-4, 6-2, for his third win in as many meetings with the Russian who was runner-up to Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open and ascended to No 2 in the world with his victory at Marseille in March.
Bautista booked a semi-final showdown with 19-year-old Italian Jannik Sinner, the world No 31 who beat Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik 7-6 (7/5), 6-4.
Against Sinner, he’ll be looking to avenge a three-set defeat in the third round at Dubai.
Women’s world No 2 Osaka — seeded second behind top-ranked Ashleigh Barty in the prestigious ATP Masters and WTA hardcourt tournament — had bowed out hours earlier, the Japanese star’s 23-match winning streak coming to a crashing halt with a 6-0, 6-4 loss to Greece’s Maria Sakkari.
Osaka hadn’t dropped a set at love since her last defeat, which came in February 2020 in a Fed Cup match.
“She has the most wins so far this year so she’s in great form — it meant a lot to me,” said Sakkari, who let loose a scream of delight after the final point.
Sakkari will face eighth-seeded Canadian Bianca Andreescu for a place in the women’s final.
Andreescu, ranked ninth in the world, clawed out a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 victory over tenacious 58th-ranked Spaniard Sara Sorribes Tormo.