English interest at the Miami Open was ended as Cameron Norrie, Katie Boulter and Fran Jones were all knocked out on Saturday in Florida.
Boulter was beaten in straight sets, 6-3 7-5, by 13th seed Karolina Muchova in the third round while Norrie and Jones’ exits came in the second round.
British No 1 Norrie, having earned a first-round bye as the tournament 23rd seed, was beaten by American Alex Michelsen, 7-5 6-7 (4-7) 6-4, while Jones withdrew halfway through her match against fifth seed Jessica Pegula due to illness.
Nothing could separate the two players in the first set until Michelsen finally broke Norrie’s serve with his sixth set point of the 12th game.
The Brit then found himself 3-0 down in the second but fought back to take things to a tie-break, which he claimed to force a deciding set.
A break in the third game of that third set proved pivotal for Michelsen as he served his way into the last 16.
Jones had spoken of how she hadn’t felt well in the lead up to her opening win over legendary, seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams, but battled through due to wanting to face the 45-year-old, her childhood idol.
But it appeared Jones was not yet fully recovered for when she faced Pegula, losing the opening set 6-1 before trailing the American 3-0 in the second when she ultimately decided to withdraw.
Elsewhere on Saturday, men’s second seed Jannik Sinner – 2024 champion in Miami – easily overcame Damir Dzumhur in straight sets, 6-3 6-3.
Sinner is looking to complete the coveted ‘Sunshine Double’ after his triumph in Indian Wells last weekend.
Another former champion Daniil Medvedev, in 2023, found the going a little tougher as the ninth seed had to battle back from a set down to beat Rei Sakamoto 6-7 (10-12) 6-3 6-1.
Meanwhile, Alejandro Tabilo fought back from one set down to beat Andrey Rublev 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 6-4, while 17-year-old Frenchman Moise Kouame’s run was ended with a straight-sets defeat to 21st seed Jiri Lehecka, 6-2 7-5.
Kouame had made a name for himself with his first round win over Zachary Svajda as he became the youngest winner of a Masters 1000 match since a certain Rafael Nadal in 2003.
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