Sebastian Korda caused an upset at the 2026 Miami Open by defeating top seed Carlos Alcaraz in the third round. Reacting to this, Taylor Fritz praised his compatriot, stating that he had predicted Korda would challenge the world No. 1 in Florida.
Korda, seeded 32nd at the ATP Masters 1000 hard-court tournament, began his campaign by defeating Camilo Ugo Carabelli with a score of 6-0, 6-3 in his opening match. He then faced Alcaraz in the third round and eliminated him with a scoreline of 6-3, 5-7, 6-4.
Taylor Fritz Predicted Sebastian Korda’s Miami Open Upset Over Carlos Alcaraz
Fritz, who is seeded sixth at the 2026 Miami Open, started his campaign in the second round after receiving a first-round bye. He opened his tournament account by triumphing over Botic van de Zandschulp (6-3, 6-7(2), 6-3) in the second round and then defeated Reilly Opelka (6-3, 6-4) in the third round.
During the post-match press conference after his third-round victory, Fritz spoke about Korda, highlighting that the former world No. 15 is playing exceptionally well, serving well, and has always been a strong returner.
“Yeah, I mean, I saw a lot of him in Dallas. Obviously, we had a very, very close match. I thought I played very well in that match and was still two points away from losing it. So I know Seb’s been playing really well. I feel like he’s been serving; he’s always returned well, struck the ball, and grabbed the baseline,” Fritz said.
The former world No. 4 expressed that Korda’s strong serving has boosted his confidence. He also mentioned that he had always predicted that Korda would present a challenge for Alcaraz during their third-round match at the Miami Open.
“I think he’s been serving pretty better than than normal. He’s been serving really well and playing with confidence. And obviously, I can say this now, and it’s not, you know, you don’t need to believe me or not, but I did say I felt like this was going to be a really close match,” he added.
MORE: Carlos Alcaraz Warns Rivals After Sebastian Korda Plays ‘Above Normal Level’ in Miami Upset
Looking ahead, Korda will face qualifier Martín Landaluce in the fourth round of the 2026 Miami Open. The Spaniard earned his spot in the main draw of the ATP Masters hard-court tournament in Florida by defeating Mackenzie McDonald (6-3, 6-4) in the first qualifying round and then eliminating Thiago Agustín Tirante (3-6, 7-5, 6-4) in the next qualifying round.
In the main draw at the Miami Open, Landaluce defeated Marcos Giron (6-3, 7-6(6)) in the first round, followed by victories over 17th seed Luciano Darderi (6-3, 6-7(4), 6-4) and 14th seed Karen Khachanov (6-3, 7-6(2)) in the second and third rounds, respectively, advancing to the fourth round.
Korda and Landaluce have never faced each other on the ATP Tour, so their upcoming fourth-round match in Florida will be their first meeting. The winner will advance to face either Fritz or 21st seed Jiří Lehečka in the quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, Fritz will compete against Lehečka in the fourth round of the 2026 Miami Open. The Czech secured his place against the former world No. 4 by defeating wild card Moïse Kouamé (6-2, 7-5) and Ethan Quinn (6-3, 7-6(6)) in the second and third rounds, respectively.
Fritz and Lehečka have faced each other five times on the ATP Tour, with the American winning four of those matches. Their most recent encounter was at a 2025 Davis Cup tie, where Lehečka secured a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 win.
