Carlos Alcaraz said he never expected to have such a meteoric rise so early in his career after winning his first ATP Masters 1000 title at the Miami Open.

Alcaraz defeated Casper Ruud 7-5 6-4 in the final, making the 18-year-old the youngest ever winner in Miami, beating Novak Djokovic's previous record when he won it aged 19.

With the win, Alcaraz jumped all the way up number 11 in the world.

Speaking to Tennis Channel after his triumph, Alcaraz said he has already exceeded his goals for this season.

"Of course, I did not expect this," he said.

"My goal was to end this year in the top-15, and now I'm at 11, close to the top-10. I'm going up so fast, and I think it's [because of] all the hard work I'm putting in every day.

"Of course my experience from last year has helped me a lot – playing Rafa (Nadal) in Madrid, against (Alexander) Zverev in Acapulco – you have to live that experience to learn.

"When I started playing tennis when I was five or six, I wanted to be number one in the world, and this year I've realised I can beat the top players in the world."

Alcaraz was buoyed by the presence of his coach, former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero, who surprised him the day before the final after being absent throughout the tournament, mourning the death of his father back in Spain.

"Juan Carlos [Ferrero] played everything that I'm playing, he has experienced all that I am experiencing right now, so he has helped me a lot," he said.

"It's amazing to have Juan Carlos here with me – I talk with him every day, but it was a surprise when he arrived, I didn't know anything.

"It was a big surprise and I was really happy [to see him] – I'm really happy to win my first Masters 1000 title with him here."

With the young Spaniard now drawing comparisons to Spanish superstar Rafael Nadal, Alcaraz said it can only be a good thing.

"If people are comparing you with Rafa, that means you are doing great things, and you are doing it the right way," he said.

"I'm trying to not think about that – Rafa is Rafa, and I am Carlos Alcaraz – Rafa is one of the best players in the history of tennis, and I am a young man living his dream.

"I looked up to Rafa when I was young, he inspired me a lot, watching his big matches, so to be around him in the tour, and to be able to play against him, is pretty special."

Carlos Alcaraz became the youngest Miami Open men's champion as the teenage Spaniard continued his rapid rise by fending off world number eight Casper Ruud.

A 7-5 6-4 victory in Sunday's final gave 18-year-old Alcaraz the third ATP singles title of his career, after winning the 2021 Croatia Open and the Rio Open in February this year.

Alcaraz's maiden Masters 1000 title saw him secure Miami glory even earlier than Novak Djokovic, who was 19 at the time of his 2007 triumph.

"I have no words to describe how I feel – it feels so special to win my first Masters 1000 here in Miami," Alcaraz said.

While he got the job done in the end, there was far from a smooth start for Alcaraz, who lost the first three games of the opening set as Ruud grabbed the early break.

Down 4-1 in that first set, Alcaraz then rattled off three consecutive games to tie it back up, and after breaking again to go up 6-5, he held his nerve to save a break point and move ahead in the contest.

Ruud had issues dealing with Alcaraz's first serve all match long, but it was most dominant in the first set, the Spanish player winning 76 per cent when landing his first serves, while Ruud was down at 54 per cent.

Alcaraz flipped the script in the second set and jumped out to a 3-0 lead with a double break. Ruud was able to get one break back, but he never threatened the rest of the way as Alcaraz closed it out in style, conceding only two points from his last three service games.

Speaking on the court after his win, Alcaraz was overjoyed as he acknowledged a large contingent of support in the crowd, including coach Juan Carlos Ferrero.

"I have my whole team with me, and my family… this is the second tournament that they've all been here with me," he said.

"Thank you to my team, I'm glad to have my father here with me and to be able to share this moment with my family."

Touching on some of his strategy, Alcaraz said the plan was to try and avoid Ruud's dominant forehand as much as possible.

"I knew Casper is playing unbelievable, and has a big forehand, so I tried to play to his backhand first, and attack all the time," he said.

"I'm always trying to attack, and not let him dominate the match with his forehands down the line – that was a pretty big key for me."

With the win, Alcaraz becomes the world number 11, and does not turn 19 until next month.

Iga Swiatek scored a sensational win against Naomi Osaka in the Miami Open final and predicted it would mark "the start of a great rivalry".

A 6-4 6-0 victory for Swiatek means the new WTA number one has won three consecutive WTA 1000 titles, becoming the first player to do so at the beginning of a season.

Saturday's success sealed the 'sunshine double' as the 20-year-old captured the Indian Wells and Miami titles back to back, becoming the youngest player to achieve that feat, and only the fourth in history, after Steffi Graf, who did it twice, Kim Clijsters and Victoria Azarenka.

Addressing Osaka, Swiatek said: "I wanted to say I'm pretty glad we could play this match, and I think it's the start of a great rivalry.

"You're really an inspiration and this sport is better with you, so keep going."

Osaka is battling her way back into the sport after documenting her struggles with mental health and depression, and her ranking stood at 77 before this tournament.

She was reduced to tears in Indian Wells after being heckled by a spectator, and the Japanese star, a former WTA number one, referenced that incident in a post-match speech after losing to Swiatek.

Thanking her support team, Osaka said they were "the ones who keep pushing me forward after the things that happened two weeks ago – they're the rock that stays by my side".

Although Swiatek beat her resoundingly in the final, these two appear to be close allies, with a meal they enjoyed together in Australia in January 2020 having sparked a friendship.

"I want to congratulate Iga," said Osaka. "I was just thinking yesterday about when I had that dinner with you in Australia, and watching your journey is really incredible, and I hope you continue having fun. Apparently we're tied 1-1 now."

Osaka, who beat Swiatek in Toronto three years ago in their only past meeting, said her conqueror was "an incredible, amazing person", and assured her own supporters she had been having "a lot of fun".

"I hope I can keep working hard and get more opportunities to be in a situation like this again," Osaka added. "Just to be in the final means a lot to me."

That is both pertinent and refreshing given Osaka's future in tennis has appeared in doubt during the past year.

Swiatek, meanwhile, goes from strength to strength. From her French Open final triumph in October 2020 to this latest win, she has won each of the six finals she has contested. Across the last four, Swiatek has won four 6-0 'bagel' sets.

Doing the Indian Wells and Miami double, after previously taking the Doha title this year, shows Swiatek to be a worthy number one.

"I didn't think that was possible," she told Amazon Prime, assessing her back-to-back wins in America. "I'm trying to see what my limits are, and when I was coming from Indian Wells, I said to my coach, 'Did you ever have a situation like that where a player plays the final at Indian Wells and has to play the next match in three days?'. He said that I shouldn't worry and we can do it."

Swiatek's winning streak stands at 17 matches, her record for the season is 26-3, and she has won 20 consecutive sets. Her new number one status will be confirmed on Monday, when the newly retired Ash Barty is taken off the WTA list, and Swiatek hopes to stay there.

"We're going to see. The end of the season is still a long way," she said. "I hope I'm going to keep doing well with the pressure."

Iga Swiatek sealed the 'sunshine double' with a trouncing of Naomi Osaka as the new world number one added the Miami Open title to her Indian Wells triumph.

Twenty-year-old Swiatek will succeed the retired Ash Barty on top of the WTA rankings on Monday, and she has reached the top spot for the first time in staggering style.

A 6-4 6-0 victory against former number one Osaka in Saturday's final made Swiatek the first player to win the first three WTA 1000 events in a season.

Those are the highest value tournaments on the tour outside the grand slams, and Swiatek has chopped down the fields in Doha, Indian Wells and now Miami in staggering fashion.

Her winning streak stands at 17 matches, her record for the season is 26-3, and she has won 20 consecutive sets.

Swiatek set the tone for the match when she broke for a 3-2 lead in the opening set, whipping an exquisite backhand winner across court to seize the initiative.

She had a look-in next time around too, with Osaka doing well to fend off a break point and keep the Pole within touching distance.

The first set was secured when Osaka hoisted an aggressive forehand service return long, and that ramped up the pressure at the beginning of the second

In a flash, Swiatek earned herself three breakpoints, and although Osaka saved the first with a drive volley, the Japanese player sent a forehand into the net on the next point

Swiatek was displaying some startling shot-making, and a cross-court forehand winner in the third game was a thing of beauty, helping her establish a double break.

Osaka is battling her way back into the sport after documenting her struggles with mental health and depression, and her ranking stood at 77 before this tournament.

By reaching the final she proved her talent remains formidable, but Swiatek at present is on another level to her tour rivals, and a clinical sweep of the second set was complete when Osaka hooked a forehand wide.

Only three players had previously secured this back-to-back double in Miami and Indian Wells: Steffi Graf in 1994 and 1996, Kim Clijsters in 2005 and Victoria Azarenka in 2016. Swiatek is the youngest to achieve the feat.

Daniil Medvedev has confirmed he will undergo a procedure to fix a troubling hernia issue, which may keep him out of the French Open.

Medvedev, who enjoyed a short-lived stint as world number one at the start of March before relinquishing the crown back to Novak Djokovic, reached the quarter-finals at Roland Garros last year.

However, the chances of the Russian appearing in Paris now seem slim, given he faces up to two months out of action following the impending operation.

This year's French Open runs from May 22 until June 5.

"Hi everyone," the world number two tweeted on Saturday. "The last months I have been playing with a small hernia.

"Together with my team I have decided to have a small procedure done to fix the problem. I will likely be out for the next 1-2 months and will work hard to be back on court soon. Thanks for all the support."

Medvedev had been hoping to use the clay court swing to reclaim top spot in the ATP rankings.

He could have done so had he reached the semi-finals of the Miami Open last week, yet the 26-year-old lost 7-6 (9-7) 6-3 in the quarters to Hubert Hurkacz.

Medvedev appeared to be struggling in that tie and after the defeat he told reporters: "All the match I was not feeling my best. But, you know, sometimes it happens.

"I don't know the actual reason. Maybe the heat. But I was feeling super, like, dizzy, tired, and there was this long game where I couldn't serve anymore.

"Then in the locker room I was cramping quite much, so physically was not easy. But at the same time, that's part of the game."

Should Medvedev fail to return in time to make the season's second grand slam, the reigning US Open champion will hope to be fully firing by the time Wimbledon comes around in late June.

Naomi Osaka is through to her first tournament final since her 2021 Australian Open win, getting past Belinda Bencic 6-4 3-6 6-4 at the Miami Open on Thursday.

The reigning Olympic champion looked strong early, breaking twice to go up 4-1 as she took advantage of Osaka's second serve, winning nine of the 11 second serves she saw in the opening set.

As Osaka's success on second serve cleaned up in the second set, Bencic's avenue to victory vanished, unable to save either of the two break points she faced in the second set.

Osaka's first serve percentage shot up to 70 in the deciding set, winning 87 per cent of points on first serve (20-23) to shut the door. Despite Bencic breaking back once after going down a double-break, she was unable to stop her Japanese opponent from serving it out.

Speaking on court after her win, the Florida native was emotional, shedding some tears as she thanked the fans in attendance.

"I just wanted to say thank you everyone, the atmosphere was really good," she said.

"Damn, I'm always crying. I just wanted to say thank you, this tournament really means a lot to me and it's my first time in the finals here."

World number-one-in-waiting Iga Swiatek twice came back from a break down in the second set to overcome the challenge of American Jessica Pegula 6-2 7-5.

The straight sets win for the 20-year-old Polish star means she has now not dropped a set in eight straight matches dating back to the fourth round at the Indian Wells Open where she beat Angelique Kerber two sets to one. 

Against Pegula, Swiatek was simply too strong in the opening set, breaking twice in four tries when Pegula's second serve was vulnerable, with the American only winning 27 per cent of her second serve points (4-15) in the opening frame.

The second set was far more competitive, but Swiatek remained just slightly better both on serve and in the return game in a set where four consecutive games resulted in breaks in a seesawing contest.

Pegula refused to let the top seed serve it out comfortably, saving two match points to extend the second set at 5-5. It was just delaying the inevitable as Swiatek broke back instantly and held her nerve, and serve, to avoid a tie-break.

Daniil Medvedev believes he is in a good spot despite letting slip his chance to claim the world number one ranking at the Miami Masters, losing 6-7 (5-7) 3-6 to Hubert Hurkacz on Thursday.

Medvedev had to deal with dizziness and fatigue during the match, taking a medical timeout against the defending champion in Miami, and was disappointed he was not able to produce his best tennis.

The defeat means the 25-year-old will stay behind Novak Djokovic, who has not played on the ATP Tour since losing to Jiri Vesely back in the quarter-finals in Dubai.

Heading into the clay season, the Russian world number two is buoyant after a 4-2 record across Acapulco and Indian Wells.

"I'm kind of happy about the tournament in Miami in a way of tennis… I managed in Miami to find just a little spark to make it work," Medvedev said post-match.

"Today was not enough, but I'm happy that I saw that I'm able to do it. I'm in the right direction, so it's good."

Hurkacz will face Carlos Alcaraz, who made his second ATP 1000 semi-final after a thrilling 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 7-6 (7-5) victory against Miomir Kecmanovic.

Both Alcaraz and Kecmanovic exhibited extraordinary court coverage in a match-up between two of the more adept returners of serve on the tour, but the 18-year-old Spaniard could simply find a higher gear as points progressed.

Alcaraz played some inspired tennis to break back in the seventh game in the opening set, shifting Kecmanovic around the court to set up a stunning cross-court backhand pass for break point, before stepping in on the second serve to restore parity.

Despite Kecmanovic holding to love in his next two service games, it did not put consequent pressure on his teenage opponent, who forced a tie-break. However, Kecmaovic clawed back from a mini-break to take a riveting opening set.

Hitting 52 winners for the match, the world number 16 pulled out his best tennis of the match in Kecmanovic's opening service game of the second set, coming up with a magnificent lob on the run to set up the break.

Saving break point while serving for the set, he held out to force a deciding third. Coming back from a mini-break in the third set tie-break, Alcaraz ended the match on fitting note, scrambling to the net to slice past Kecmanovic at the end of a frenetic rally.

Daniil Medvedev missed the chance to return to the top of the rankings as he was beaten by Hubert Hurkacz in the quarter-finals of the Miami Open on Thursday.

Medvedev would have become world number one once again if he had defeated Hurkacz, but the defending champion won 7-6 (9-7) 6-3 on Hard Rock Stadium.

Novak Djokovic will remain the top-ranked male player on the planet thanks to Pole Hurkacz, who levelled his head-to-head record with the Russian at 2-2.

Carlos Alcaraz or Miomir Kecmanovic will do battle with eighth seed Hurkacz, who won 74 per cent of points on his first serve and broke Medvedev's serve three times, for a place in the final.

Hurkacz's win over the top seed was his second against a top-two player, with the first also coming against Medvedev at Wimbledon last year.

"I think the return was crucial. I was able to make a lot of returns and get some free points on my serve, because having rallies with Daniil is fun, but they get long,” Hurkacz said on his on-court interview.

"It is good I was able to get some free points. I have spent a lot of time in Florida, so I am used to the humidity. I think the conditions were in my favour today, so I tried to use them."

Casper Ruud set up a semi-final with Francisco Cerundolo at the Miami Masters after he defeated Alexander Zverev 6-3 1-6 6-3 on Wednesday.

Ruud's heavy topspin game gave Zverev problems initially, contributing to a 94 per cent success rate from points on his first serve, while Zverev struggled to find rhythm on serve at 58 per cent.

Saving two break points in the opening game of the second seemed to spark Zverev into life, but Ruud was able to regroup and continue dominating from the baseline in the third to comfortably see his way through.

"It was great to get that break early on [in the third set] and I was able to keep it all the way out," Ruud said post-match. "I was serving well. I can thank my serving for the win today."

The Norweigian world number eight lost his first three ATP 1000 quarter-finals on hard court, but played with confidence on the back of a 75 per cent first-serve rate.

He will face Cerundolo, who also advanced into the semi-finals on Wednesday, after Jannik Sinner was forced to retire due to foot blisters. The Argentine was leading 4-1 in the first set after 23 minutes when Sinner called the match.

The world number 103 held a 0-2 record on hard courts prior to this week, but has now made his first ATP 1000 semi-final in as many attempts after progressing past Tallon Griekspoor, Reilly Opelka, Gael Monfils and Frances Tiafoe.

Cerundolo has enjoyed a strong start to 2022, with respective quarter-final and semi-final appearances on clay in Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro.

The winner of the upcoming semi-final will make their first ATP 1000 final appearance, while Ruud was able to beat Zverev at third time of asking, losing the opening two games head-to-head.

Iga Swiatek progressed to her fourth WTA 1000 semi-final on Wednesday at the Miami Open, defeating Petra Kvitova 6-3 6-3.

After taking out tournaments in Doha and Indian Wells this year, the 20-year-old's undefeated streak now moves to 15 in a row.

Kvitova largely stayed in points in the opening exchanges and held a higher first-serve rate than Swiatek, but indicative of the form the Polish star is currently in, she played with clarity and did not hesitate when opportunities presented.

Along with winning six of eight points on Kvitova's second serve in the first set, the soon-to-be world number one converted on her sole chance at break point, claiming the crucial break in the sixth game before closing the opening set out.

After a tough service hold in the fourth game and four initial chances at break point in the second set, Swiatek made it count on her fifth attempt, spectacularly managing to move the 28th seed around the court and turn defence into attack.

Seeing the finish line, the Polish second seed grew increasingly assertive in both serve and shot selection to both secure the break and see out the match, even claiming a second break for a punctuation mark.

Swiatek will face Jessica Pegula, who is also through to the semi-finals after Paula Badosa retired from their matchup due to a viral illness.

Pegula was leading 4-1 after only 18 minutes of play when Badosa retired, having won four straight games after initially dropping her serve.

The 28-year-old has now won her last two matches in Miami via retirement after she advanced past Anhelina Kalinina in the fourth round, winning the first set 6-0.

If Pegula defeats Swiatek in the semi-final, it would make for her maiden WTA 1000 final appearance.

Dominic Thiem's bad luck continued as the former world number three confirmed he has tested positive for COVID-19.

Thiem only made his return to action on Tuesday, having not featured on the ATP Tour since June last year.

The Austrian underwent surgery on a wrist injury that kept him out of Wimbledon and also prevented him from defending his US Open title, while he also missed this year's Australian Open.

Having opted to push back his comeback further by skipping Indian Wells and the Miami Open, Thiem instead decided to play at the Challenger Tour's Andalucia Open.

His return was short-lived, as Thiem went down 6-3 6-4 to Pedro Cachin.

And Thiem will now face another spell out, after revealing he has contracted coronavirus.

"Looks like lately the good news don't last long... last night after dinner, I started feeling unwell and didn't have a good night," Thiem wrote on his official Instagram account.

"After developing mild symptoms I decided to take a test this morning, which came back positive for COVID-19.

"Now I have to wait and see how it develops. I'll keep you posted. Thank you all in advance for your support!"

Former US Open champion Dominic Thiem made his long-awaited return from a wrist injury on Tuesday, but lost 3-6 4-6 to Pedro Cachin at an ATP Challenger event in Marbella.

Thiem, the former world number three who hasn't played since 2021, started slowly and fell 5-0 behind in the first set against the world number 228.

He improved in the second set but was not able to recover from dropping serve in the first game.

"Obviously, the result today is the bitter part," Thiem posted on his Instagram. "I would have wanted to win, and I have to accept the defeat in a humble manner.

"This is only the beginning of a long way to the top of my game."

Emerging Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz continued his rise with a 7-5 6-3 upset of third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas to reach the Miami Masters quarter-finals on Tuesday.

The 18-year-old, who reached last year's US Open final eight after beating Tsitsipas in the third round, proved too good again for the Greek in one hour and 50 minutes.

Alcaraz reached last week's Indian Wells semi-finals and is now 15-2 on the season, with the win setting up a clash with Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic who upset last week's Indian Wells champion Taylor Fritz 3-6 6-1 6-4.

Tsitsipas broke the Spaniard in the sixth game and led 5-2 before Alcaraz reeled off seven straight games to sensationally take the first set.

Alcaraz surged ahead in the second set, with his defence and speed leaving Tsitsipas short on answers.

The Spaniard, who saved seven of eight break points throughout the match, converted his fourth match point for victory.

"It was really, really tough. He was playing unbelievable," Alcaraz said after the match. "All I can say is I fought until the last ball in the first set [to] come back."

Ninth seed Jannik Sinner won 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 over enigmatic Australian Nick Kyrgios, who had a furious outburst directed at umpire Carlos Bernardes.

The Australian was heard to label Bernardes "an absolute clown" and continued to berate the umpire late in the first set, leading to a code violation and two penalties.

Kyrgios completely lost his cool, demanding to speak to a tournament official before smashing his racquet early in the second set, leading to a game penalty as well.

Sinner will next take on Argentine Francisco Cerundolo after he defeated 28th seed Francis Tiafoe lost 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-3) 6-2.

Top seed Daniil Medvedev made light work of Jenson Brooksby 7-5 6-1 to set up a quarter-final showdown with reigning champion Hubert Hurkacz who won 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 over Lloyd Harris. Medvedev will return to the top of the ATP rankings if he wins their quarter-final.

Second seed Alexander Zverev got past Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-4 6-4 and will meet sixth seed Casper Ruud in the last eight, after the Norwegian won 6-3 6-4 over Briton Cameron Norrie.

Naomi Osaka will make her first Miami Open semi-final appearance after defeating Danielle Collins 6-2 6-1 on Tuesday.

The Florida native and the 2022 Australian Open finalist were worlds apart on serve, with Osaka putting up 13 aces, while Collins served seven double faults and had a meagre first-serve rate of 37.8 per cent.

While dropping only three games provides ample reflection, Osaka was in almost total control, winning 28 of 38 total points on serve and over half of the points on return with 26 out of 45. Her 25 winners to three unforced errors only reinforced the dominant nature of the win.

The Japanese former world number one has not dropped a set en route to the semi-final, and did not face a single break point against Collins, who called a medical time-out to address a neck issue after the first set.

"I'm glad I was able to get through quickly," Osaka said post-match. "I focused on trying to hit a lot of really good returns.

"This is actually my first night match too, so I didn't know what the conditions were going to be like."

Osaka will face reigning Olympic champion Belinda Bencic, who comfortably saw her way past Daria Saville with a 6-1 6-2 win.

The Tokyo gold medallist progressed to her first WTA 1000 semi-final since Madrid in 2019, needing just 69 minutes to defeat the unseeded Australian.

With Saville serving at 51 per cent for the match, Bencic was all over the second look, winning 18 of a total 23 points in those scenarios.

The critical element of the match was the Swiss 22nd seed's ruthlessness on break point, converting seven out of total eight times.