Adam Walton is the sixth Australian through to the second round of the Miami Open after he upstaged Argentinian Sebastian Baez 6-2 6-2 on Saturday.
The 26-year-old qualifier needed just 67 minutes to defeat the world No.52, recording his fourth top-100 victory this season. Walton fired eight aces to two in the win and was more efficient on his racquet, committing 16 unforced errors to Baez’s 30.
Walton meets No.12 seed Jakub Mensik in the round of 64 as he aims to build on his fairytale run from last year’s Miami Masters event. Entering as a lucky loser, the Queenslander claimed wins against Coleman Wong and Luciano Darderi to advance to the final 16.
> READ: Walton continues Miami Masters miracle
Walton is now two wins away from reaching that stage yet again, joining Alex de Minaur, Aleksandar Vukic, Ajla Tomljanovic, Emerson Jones and Talia Gibson in the second round.
With a mix of first and second-round matches being played on Saturday, De Minaur, Tomljanovic, and Jones all fell short in their third-round attempts.
Tomljanovic forced a deciding set against No.6 seed Amanda Anisimova, but was unable to complete a come-from-behind victory. Meanwhile, after recording her first WTA 1000 victory on Friday, she was denied a place in the third round by Elina Svitolina.
De Minaur succumbed to two-time Grand Slam finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3 7-6(3) in his opening match.
Aussies in action: Miami
DAY 3 RESULTS
Men’s singles, first round
[Q] Adam Walton (AUS) d Sebastian Baez (ARG) 6-2 6-2
Marton Fucsovics (HUN) d [Q] Chris O’Connell (AUS) 7-6(6) 6-3
Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) d [5] Alex de Minaur (AUS) 6-3 7-6(3)
Women’s singles, second round
[6] Amanda Anisimova (USA) d Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) 6-1 5-7 6-4
[9] Elina Svitolina (UKR) d [WC] Emerson Jones (AUS) 6-2 6-4
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