Isner, Coric Headline Miami Quarter-finals; Federer Also In Wednesday Action

Quarter-final action kicks off on Wednesday at the Miami Open presented by Itau and the two singles matches on the roster provide markedly different forms of entertainment. Two established veterans square off in the day session and a pair of rising stars will battle at night, while a rain-delayed fourth-round clash between Roger Federer and Daniil Medvedev is also on the schedule.

Who will win the latest @FedEx #ATP Head2Head clash between these two?

— ATP Tour (@ATP_Tour) March 27, 2019

Seventh seed and defending champion John Isner looks to end the inspired run of No. 22 seed Roberto Bautista Agut. Isner leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head 2-1, but they haven’t played in more than three years. The American has successfully handled the pressure of defending his first ATP Masters 1000 title by moving through his first three rounds without dropping a set. Perhaps unsurprisingly, five of his six sets won this fortnight ended in a tie-break.

Bautista Agut continued his inspired start to 2019 by ousting top seed Novak Djokovic in the fourth round, marking his second win of the year over the World No. 1. The Spaniard opened this season by winning the Qatar ExxonMobil Open (d. Berdych) and reaching his first Grand Slam quarter-final at the Australian Open (l. To Tsitsipas). He’s now one win away from his third Masters 1000 semi-final.

The other quarter-final will see #NextGenATP Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime against No. 11 seed Borna Coric of Croatia. Auger-Aliassime came through qualifying in Miami and it’s unlikely he’ll need to do that again anytime soon. The 18-year-old has racked up quality wins to reach his first Masters 1000 quarter-final, including No. 17 seed Nikoloz Basilashvili on Tuesday for his third Top 20 victory.

It’s hard to believe that Auger-Aliassime was playing ATP Challenger Tour events just two months ago. His inspired run over the past six weeks includes his first tour-level final at the Rio Open presented by Claro (l. to Djere) and first Top 10 win over Stefanos Tsitsipas at the BNP Paribas Open. On Monday, he’ll become the first player born in the 2000s to crack the Top 50 of the ATP Rankings.

Coric has done it the hard way this fortnight by winning all of his matches in three sets. In fact, he’s dropped a set in his past seven victories this year. The World No. 13 has been reaping the rewards of his hard work in the off-season and is the on-paper favourite against the Canadian, but fitness could play a factor if he’s forced to go three sets once again.

Fourth-round play concludes in the first men’s singles match on Stadium. Federer meets Medvedev, who is tied first with Tsitsipas for most match wins (17) on the ATP Tour in 2019. The Russian is 1-10 lifetime against Top 10 opponents with his lone win coming over Federer’s countryman Stan Wawrinka, in June 2017 at Wimbledon.

ORDER OF PLAY – WEDNESDAY, 27 MARCH 2019

STADIUM start 1:00 pm
WTA SINGLES

Not Before 3:00 pm
ATP – [13] Daniil Medvedev (RUS) vs [4] Roger Federer (SUI)
ATP – [22] Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) vs [7] John Isner (USA)

Not Before 7:00 pm
WTA SINGLES

Not Before 9:00 pm
[Q] Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN) vs [11] Borna Coric (CRO)

GRANDSTAND start 1:00 pm

[1] Lukasz. Kubot (POL) / Marcelo Melo (BRA) vs [5] Oliver Marach (AUT) / Mate Pavic (CRO)
Ivan Dodig (CRO) / Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) vs Maximo Gonzalez (ARG) / Horacio Zeballos (ARG)

Not Before 4:00 pm
[3] Bob Bryan (USA) / Mike Bryan (USA) vs Rohan Bopanna (IND) / Denis Shapovalov (CAN)
After Suitable Rest – John Isner (USA) / Sam Querrey (USA) vs Wesley Koolhof (NED) / Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE)

Missed Tuesday’s Action? Watch Highlights