Tsitsipas continues De Minaur’s dominance, upset fifth seed in second round in Miami | ATP Tour
match report
Tsitsipas continues De Minaur’s dominance, upset fifth seed in second round in Miami
Greek team improves to 12-1 in Lexus ATP Head2Head series
March 21, 2026
ATP Tour
Stefanos Tsitsipas has reached the third round in Miami.
Written by ATP Staff
Stefanos Tsitsipas turned back the clock at the ETA Miami Open on Friday with one of his best performances in recent years, beating familiar opposition.
The 27-year-old defeated fifth seed Alex De Minaur 6-3, 7-6(3) to advance to the third round of the ATP Masters 1000 event. With the win, he extended his Lexus ATP Head2Head Series lead over the Australian to 12-1.
“There were moments in the game that felt really good,” Tsitsipas said. “I had to deal with the nerves in the final moments. It’s not easy to deal with moments and situations like this against Alex. He’s a very tough competitor who takes back a lot of balls, so I had to work very hard to score points.”
Tsitsipas displayed an impressive serving performance during the 1 hour and 25 minutes of the match against the Australian, and excelled in key moments. According to Infosys ATP statistics, the Greek won 98% (39/40) of his first serve points and saved both break points he faced.
“I like to say it’s skill. I hope that happens every match, that’s crazy,” Tsitsipas said of his first-serve statistics. “If I can keep playing like this in every game, I’ll be very happy.”
The victory marked the former world number three’s first consecutive wins at the Masters 1000 level since reaching the quarter-finals of the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters last April. It’s also a pivotal moment as he slipped out of the top 50 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and is now up three spots to No. 48.
The Greek’s next test will be a third-round clash with Arthur Fells. Earlier on Friday, the Frenchman beat #NextGenATP star Darwin Branch 6-2, 6-3.
