Out of a "Dark Hole" and Into a Brighter Future

Sebastian Korda, his prospects darkening, lit up Miami in a win over No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz.

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Sebastian Korda stepped to the baseline on Sunday afternoon at the Miami Open to serve out what would be the biggest win of his career, having put ATP No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz on the ropes.

“I wasn’t thinking; I was kind of in a flow state,” Korda said afterward on Tennis Channel. “That’s where you want to be when you’re a tennis player: just kind of flowing out there.”

Korda, up 6-3, 5-4, hadn’t been broken by Alcaraz in the entire match. But right when he was ready to seal the biggest win of his career, the “flow” clogged and dried up abruptly, and Korda swiftly lost seven points in a row.