Anna 
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka secured her spot in the last 16 of the Miami Open on Saturday after her opponent, Elena-Gabriela Ruse, retired due to injury. Meanwhile, men’s top seed Alexander Zverev comfortably defeated Jacob Fearnley 6-2, 6-4 to reach the third round.
Sabalenka, who recently finished as the runner-up at Indian Wells, dominated the first set 6-1 before Ruse was forced to withdraw with a right thigh injury. The three-time Grand Slam champion will now face American Danielle Collins, the defending Miami Open champion, who edged past Swiss qualifier Rebeka Masarova 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.
Former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka battled to a hard-fought 7-6(6), 3-6, 6-4 victory against American wildcard Hailey Baptiste. She will next take on Italian sixth seed Jasmine Paolini, who advanced after Ons Jabeur retired with a left leg injury while trailing 4-3 in the opening set.
Osaka, who returned to professional tennis in January 2024 following a 15-month break to have her first child, expressed confidence in her current fitness. She believes she is in better shape now than in 2021, the year she won her most recent Grand Slam title.
“I feel like I’m better than in 2021,” Osaka said. “COVID really set me back, I’m not going to lie. I was in the house doing nothing. But fitness-wise, this is definitely the best I’ve been in a couple of years.”
Third seed Coco Gauff also moved forward with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Greece’s Maria Sakkari, while Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen defeated Taylor Townsend 6-1, 7-6(3).
In a major upset, local player Ashlyn Krueger stunned 26th seed and former U.S. Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez. Krueger will now face Zheng in the next round.
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