Miami Masters 1,000, day 6, LIVE: Cerúndolo, the only Argentinian in the running, and a tough match against Auger-Aliassime

Francis Cerundolo he is the latest Argentinian hope to reach the round of 16 of the Miami Masters 1000. After the elimination of Diego Schwartzman, the Buenos Aires native will face a difficult challenge against the Canadian this Monday Felix Auger-Aliassime (6th), one of the best on the track and on the hard surface on which the tournament takes place. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 2:35 pm, with a telecast from ESPN and Star+.

Cerúndolo, who entered directly into the second round of the draw, defeated the American on his debut Alexander Kovacevic for a double 6-4 on field 7 of the Hard Rock Stadium complex, in the Miami Gardens.

The 24-year-old from Buenos Aires and 31st in the ATP rankings has been the best Argentine for a few weeks and has made a decisive first step, even if his opponent will present an important challenge this Monday.

Auger-Aliassime beat the Brazilian Thiago Monteiro (81st) in a balanced match which ended in two tie breaks 7-6 (5) and 7-6 (8).

Schwartzman’s losing streak

Argentine Diego Schwartzman is still unable to unlock the next level. This Sunday, the porteño number 38 in the world ranking was eliminated from the 1,000 Masters in Miami with a logical defeat against the Danish Holger Rune (8th) and could not break that curse of winning two consecutive matches: he has not succeeded since the last US Open.

On a hard surface, Rune overtook him with partials of 6-4 and 6-2, eliminating the good sensations he had felt last Friday, when he beat the Chinese Yibing Wu (64th) 7-6(1) in the second round and 6-1.

Schwartzman, in three months of racing in 2023, has a record of just three wins and nine losses. Given some results, he could even drop out of the Top 40 at the end of this race (almost 6 years have passed since he was last out of that bracket).

The Argentine knows he has to turn the page quickly, refocus on his tennis and try to defend as many points as possible on the European tour on brick dust, where he put in a good performance last season and will force him to feel good.

Rune, for his part, reached the round of 16 of the M1000 for the first time in Miami, where he will meet the American Taylor Fritz (10th), who overtook Canadian Denis Shapovalov (30th).