Sebastian Korda secured his second win against top seed Carlos Alcaraz in their six-match rivalry. The American, who entered the Miami Open match as the underdog against the former champion, dished out a solid performance to dismiss Alcaraz 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 in the third round on Sunday, March 22.
Korda was accompanied by his family and his coaching team, including newly appointed coach Ryan Harrison.
Sebastian Korda Acknowledges ‘Nasty Situations’ After Beating Carlos Alcaraz at the Miami Open
Korda won his first match against a World No. 1 by beating Alcaraz in Miami. The American previously beat him at the 2022 Monte-Carlo Masters, when the Spaniard was ranked No. 11. In the three matches that followed, Korda failed to win a single set.
In Miami, the 25-year-old appeared poised to close out the contest in straight sets, leading 6-3, 5-3. With some help from the crowd, however, Alcaraz managed to regroup and broke his opponent, who was serving for the match. He eventually stole the set with a 7-5 score.
During his on-court interview, Korda joked about his blunder. “I took the scenic route, that’s for sure. A little more stress than I’d want but happy with how I played; happy with how I stayed with it. I kept believing; I got myself in some nasty situations and yeah just kept going and played really well at the end.”
“I took the scenic route, that’s for sure.” 😜@Sebikorda #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/5cu2ik83S0
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 22, 2026
Despite the obvious shift in momentum, the American kept his emotions in check in the third set and remained steady on his serve. He broke Alcaraz in the seventh game and successfully served out the match this time around.
Korda has had his share of physical and mental struggles over the years. To find another gear during tense mid-match moments against top players, the player did a “lot of soul searching.”
“I’ve gone through a lot of things; I’ve played a lot of great players; I haven’t really been able to get it done, but I felt always when I was playing these top players that I kinda just start spraying the ball, do too much than I really need to do,” he said on-court.
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He surprisingly revealed that his team’s strategy was to play “average” against the World No. 1. “Our goal today was to play average. Have an average ball; don’t try to do too much with it because that’s when you get in trouble and that’s kinda what he’s searching for,” Korda said.
Alcaraz has suffered an early loss at the Miami Open two years running. At last year’s event, he lost his opening match to unseeded David Goffin after winning the first set. The Spaniard’s next challenge is defending 1000 points on clay as the reigning champion at the Monte-Carlo Masters.
As for Korda, the American awaits either Karen Khachanov or another Spaniard, Martin Landaluce, for a place in the quarterfinals of the 2026 edition.