Pegula looks to dictate from the baseline in the first couple of points but Raducanu moves well on the defence and forces the miss.

A strong serve and forehand winner down the middle of the court seals the opening game for the Briton.

Jamie Braidwood27 March 2025 01:03

Raducanu won the toss and chose to serve first! We are underway in Miami.

Jamie Braidwood27 March 2025 01:00

And here come the players! The temperature has cooled ahead of the night session and this will be Raducanu’s first match on the Hard Rock Stadium court since the opening round last week. Pegula, the American, will likely have the backing of the home crowd in Miami.

Jamie Braidwood27 March 2025 00:54

Emma Raducanu, a grand slam champion at the US Open three years ago, secured her first win against a top-10 opponent on a hard court when she defeated Emma Navarro in the second round.

Could she claim a second one in a week against Jessica Pegula? The fourth seed is an incredibly consistent player on this surface, having reached this stage of the Miami Open in the last three years.

Jamie Braidwood27 March 2025 00:54

The night session in Miami is set to get underway almost two hours after the intended order of play, but Emma Raducanu and Jessica Pegula will be walking out onto court in the next few minutes.

Both women’s semi-finals will be played tomorrow (Thursday). World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka takes on sixth seed Jasmine Paolini in the first semi-final. In the second, wildcard Alexandra Eala is waiting to face either Pegula or Raducanu.

Jamie Braidwood27 March 2025 00:46

Since ended her coaching trial with Vladimir Platenik on the eve of the Miami tournament Raducanu has been working with former mentors Mark Petchey and Jane O’Donoghue during the fortnight.

And Raducanu said the change of approach and working with people who she “trusts” has helped her “have fun” off the court and contributed to her performances in matches.

Jamie Braidwood27 March 2025 00:40

Raducanu has enjoyed a brilliant run in Miami – in fact, her best since her run to the US Open title as a qualifier in 2021.

Here’s how she’s fared so far:

Round 1: 6-2, 6-1 win over Sayaka Ishii (wildcard)

Round 2: 7-6(6), 2-6, 7-6(3) over Emma Navarro (8th seed)

Round 3: 6-1, 3-0 win over McCartney Kessler (retired)

Last-16: 6-1, 6-3 win over Amanda Anisimova (17th seed)

Jamie Braidwood27 March 2025 00:34

A huge, comeback victory for Grigor Dimitrov, who saves match point on his way to defeating Francisco Cerundolo 6-7 6-2 7-6 in almost three hours.

He is through to the semi-finals, where he will play either Novak Djokovic or Sebastian Korda. It’s going to be a late night in Miami, as Djokovic and Korda are scheduled to be on after Raducanu and Pegula, who are now next.

Jamie Braidwood27 March 2025 00:29

Raducanu has been enjoying shorter, more relaxed training sessions and looser warm-ups under the guidance of Jane O’Donoghue and Mark Petchey in Miami.

The 22-year-old has been seen playing plenty of games of Spikeball, which is becoming a bit of a pre-match ritual, as well as throwing around an American football in the home of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins.

(Getty Images for LTA)

Jamie Braidwood27 March 2025 00:06

Emma Raducanu is set to return to the world’s top 50 as a result of her results in Miami.

Having reached the quarter-finals, Raducanu is set to rise 12 places to 48 in the rankings.

And, if she can beat fourth seed Jessica Pegula, Raducanu would reclaim her status of British No 1 from Katie Boulter.

Jamie Braidwood26 March 2025 23:49