Heavy rain, flooding expected Friday, could disrupt star-studded Miami Open lineup

Mother Nature clearly did not consult with Miami Open organizers about Friday’s schedule.

A severe weather alert was issued by the National Weather Service for heavy rainfall leading to potential flooding beginning at 8 a.m. Friday, hours before a long list of the biggest names in tennis are set to play their opening matches.

Among the highly seeded players scheduled to take the court: Defending men’s champion and No. 3 seed Daniil Medvedev, Australian Open champion and No. 2 seed Jannik Sinner, world No. 1 Iga Swiatek, No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka, and No. 3 Coco Gauff of Delray Beach. Sabalenka will be playing for the first time since the death of her ex-boyfriend, who jumped from the balcony of a Bal Harbour hotel on Sunday night.

Other marquee names on Friday’s schedule include former No. 1s Andy Murray and Naomi Osaka; Americans Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Jessica Pegula and Sloane Stephens; Andrey Rublev, Casper Ruud, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Ons Jabeur.

Medvedev is coming off a loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the Indian Wells final last weekend. Sinner, who lost to Medvedev in last year’s Miami Open final, turned the tables and beat the Russian for the Australian Open title in January.

Medvedev has had just two days of practice in the South Florida humidity after going until the final weekend in the desert at Indian Wells, but says he is feeling “quite well” on the fast courts at Hard Rock Stadium.

“I like Miami as a city, so always happy to come back,” Medvedev said on Thursday. “I like the energy, seems pretty chill energy, but at the same time they have good restaurants and music, stuff like this. I’m always happy to play good here because I can stay longer before going home. Last year, I had great confidence, played well against great opponents and I want to try to continue that this year.”

Medvedev’s title run capped one of the best season starts by any player in recent memory. He won 24 out of 25 matches across February and March, and his record was 29-3 after lifting the Miami Open trophy.

This year, he could wind up facing Alcaraz in the final if the Spaniard continues in the form he was last week in Indian Wells.

“The courts at Indian Wells suited Carlos’ game really well, everything around the tactical details,” Medvedev said. “He beat a lot of good guys quite easily there in two years. Two times champion. I played him both times in the final, it was tough. First set I was kind of there, and then second set he raised his level just a bit more and I couldn’t catch up.

“Here, it’s different courts, pretty fast. So, if I manage to meet him it could be a bit easier for me to handle his game, even though it’s tough all the time.”

Medvedev, who has a one-year-old daughter, said fatherhood has changed him.

“Hopefully, it makes me mature a little bit; maybe at times I am still immature on the court, but I’m improving slowly,” he said, smiling. “It’s a big responsibility to be a father, and how I balance it is not easy.”

He thanked his wife for sacrificing and traveling with their daughter so he can be near her. “Sometimes I have to practice less to find the balance, whereas before I was full tennis more.”

Two players who could relate to parenthood on tour are Osaka and Elina Svitolina, who are scheduled to play each other on Friday.

Osaka returned to the tour after giving birth last year.

“I remember watching Elena while I was pregnant and thinking, `I want to be there one day.’ Great deal of respect for all the Moms on tour, and I think it’s mutual. I realize how many Moms I have around me and I’m really happy my daughter is the youngest in the bunch, so I am able to ask questions when I need to.”

Svitolina, a Ukrainian player once ranked as high as No. 3 was out for a year on maternity leave, during which Russia’s war with Ukraine began. When she returned to the tour in April 2023, she was unranked, and yet she reached the Wimbledon semifinals.

She did that while also raising millions of dollars through her Svitolina Foundation for Ukrainian hospitals and maternity wards and for the rebuild of apartments buildings that were destroyed. She was asked by Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky to become an ambassador and join his United24 initiative, the official fundraising platform for the war-torn nation.

It is a role she takes seriously, and she got teary-eyed talking about it this week.

“When you’re invited by the president of your country, it’s an honor, you need to be active, and it’s a lot of pressure but I feel like it’s a privilege as well to have this position,” she said. “I am very passionate about it, and hugely motivated to do whatever I can for the people suffering in my country.”

Her fundraising helped rebuild an apartment building for 200 displaced families. Also, she was able to provide generators to hospitals so they could perform surgeries on children and soldiers injured in the fighting.

“My perspective changed a lot after the war started,” she said. “I want to win for those people in Ukraine who wake up at night to watch my matches. I want to give them good energy.”

Svitolina’s husband is Frenchman Gael Monfils, who won his match Thursday night 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 over Dusan Lajovic of Serbia. He heaped praise on Svitolina for being an excellent mother, tennis player and advocate for her country.

“She’s a great mother first, that’s A-1,” Monfils said. “That is most important for me as her husband because, of course, we are a tennis couple, but life is beyond sports,” Monfils said. “I’m the first who was suprised at how well she came back, mentally and physically, it’s just amazing. Of course, with Ukraine..with everything she puts for her country and to be able to manage all three, it’s amazing. She’s a tough woman.”

Among the players who advanced Thursday were: No. 8 seed Maria Sakkari of Greece, who beat Yue Yuan of China in straight sets; American Madison Keys, who beat Russian teen Diana Shnaider in straight sets; American Taylor Townsend, who beat Elise Martens of Belgium; and No. 10 Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil, who rallied to get past Diane Parry of France 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.