In keeping up with the Miami Open's heritage of sporting royalty, the presence of 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams was enough to evoke serious interest in the men's semifinals.
Serena is the most decorated champion at the event, winning it an astonishing eight times. No player has matched this number. She completed a three-peat of the Miami Open between 2002 and 2004 and then from 2013 to 2015.
Since retiring from the sport in 2022, the 42-year-old has only made sporadic appearances courtside, mainly to watch her older sister, Venus Williams, in action.
Because of her busy schedule, either committing to fashion events or her business ventures, it has restricted her from making regular public appearances in tennis venues.
But Serena went against the grain on Friday with two blockbuster men's semifinal matches on schedule. First up, it was Jannik Sinner, the man of the moment, who served up another scintillating performance to defeat Daniil Medvedev for the fifth time in a row.
The Italian improved to 21-1 for the season and will contest his third final in Miami (he is 0-2 in finals in Florida). Sinner will certainly use some of the wisdom and compliments he received from Serena after the match.
The legendary American ran into Sinner on the lawn section of the Hard Rock Stadium and shared a heartfelt moment together. Serena lavished praise on the 22-year-old's monstrous forehand.
"I wish I had my forehand like that. No seriously, the racquet speed, the power, and I was like 'Wow, night and day, you're unbelievable, congratulations.'"
A bashful Sinner could only reply, "Don't say that," clearly overwhelmed. Serena was also in attendance to watch Grigor Dimitrov down Alexander Zverev in the second semifinal. The two are very good friends away from the court and shared a lovely moment together, too, after the match.
0 Comments