Men’s semifinal preview
03.26.26
By Harvey Fialkov / Staff writer
Why Sinner? The Italian is chasing the Sunshine Double (Indian Wells champion and now Miami?) and also the No. 1 mantle. He has now won 30 straight sets in his past three Masters 1000 events (2025 Paris, Indian Wells). Sinner has defeated the German in their last six meetings all on hard courts and the last three in straight sets. Zverev apparently tweaked an ankle in his win over Francisco Cerundolo Thursday night, so that could be a factor.
Why Zverev? He has won his first three matches in straight sets but has needed three tiebreaks. However, he was dominant in his 6-1, 6-2 rout of Francisco Cerundolo in a Thursday quarterfinal. Zverev last played Sinner in the Indian Wells semis and he was beaten 6-2, 6-4. He was close in last year’s Vienna final but Sinner’s three-set win in the 2025 Aussie Open final still stings.
| Jannik Sinner | Alexander Zverev | |
|---|---|---|
| Rank: | 2 | 3 |
| Seed: | 2 | 3 |
| Country: | Italy | Germany |
| Age: | 24 | 28 |
| Career Titles: | 25 (4 Grand Slams) | 24 |
| 2026 Titles: | 1 (Indian Wells) | 0 |
| Year-to-date-record: | 17-2 | 15-4 |
| Miami Open record: | 23-3 (2024 Title) | 23-10 (2018 final) |
| Career Ernings: | $60,039,831 | $60,969.344 |
Head-to-head: Sinner leads 7-4
During the 2026 Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium on March 23, 2026 in Miami Gardens (Photo by Kelly Gavin/South Florida Stadium)
Why Fils? He hasn’t lost serve in any of his four matches. Fils arguably boasts the fastest forehand on Tour, regularly going over 100 mph. Fils becomes the sixth active Frenchman to reach a Masters 1000 semifinal. No Frenchman has ever won this tournament. He has the tools to overpower the Czech.
Why Lehecka? This is his second Masters 1000 semifinal and 13th ATP Tour semifinal. He has played two high-level matches in row, beating No. 7 Taylor Fritz and qualifier Martin Landaluce without being broken. He’s the fifth Czech man to reach multiple Masters 1000 semifinals in Masters Series history. Similar to Fils, he has protected his serve like a mother hen protects her chicks.
| Arthur Fils | Jiri Lehecka | |
|---|---|---|
| Rank: | 38 | 22 |
| Seed: | 28 | 21 |
| Country: | France | Czechia |
| Age: | 21 | 24 |
| Career Titles: | 3 | 2 |
| 2026 Titles: | 0 | 0 |
| Year-to-date-record: | 13-4 | 10-5 |
| Miami Open record: | 7-2 (2025 QF) | 6-3 |
| Career Ernings: | $6,573,367 | $7,697,924 |
Head-to-head: Fils leads 2-1, with Fils winning last meeting recently in Doha QFs
