World number one and defending champion Serena Williams' hopes of winning her ninth Miami Open title were crushed on Tuesday after she suffered a three-set defeat to Svetlana Kuznetsova in the fourth round.
The 21-time Grand Slam champion failed to sustain momentum after securing the opening set and went on to lose 6-7, 6-1, 6-2 to her Russian opponent on a sweltering afternoon, the Guardian reported.
Williams produced an error-strewn performance in the game, making 55 unforced errors as compared to 18 by Kuznetsova in addition to nine double faults.