Serena Williams Ousted At Miami Tennis Open

Serena Williams had been out of the tournament for less than 20 minutes when she climbed into her white Mini Cooper with the checkerboard top and pulled away from the players' parking lot, fastening her seat belt as she drove. A hasty departure, for sure.

Williams' 20-match winning streak at Key Biscayne ended Monday with a 6-7 (3), 6-1, 6-2 loss to Svetlana Kuznetsova in the fourth round of the upset-filled Miami Open.

Williams was bidding for her ninth title in the event and her fourth in a row. But after a grueling first set that lasted nearly an hour, the 21-time Grand Slam champion faded on a sweltering afternoon.

It was her earliest exit at Key Biscayne since 2000, when she lost in the fourth round to Jennifer Capriati.

"I did the best I could," she said during a post-match news conference that lasted less than three minutes before she cut it off. "I can't win every match. These players come out and play me like they've never played before in their lives. I have to be 300 percent every day."

Williams, 34, will retain the No. 1 ranking, but she hasn't won a tournament since earning her 69th title at Cincinnati in August.

A wave of upsets continued on the men's side, too, with No. 2 Andy Murray dropping the final five games against No. 26 Grigor Dimitrov to lose 6-7 (1), 6-4, 6-3.

Murray's elimination leaves the tournament without four of the five top-seeded men. Among them only No. 1 Novak Djokovic reached the round of 16.

The No. 15-seeded Kuznetsova beat Williams with defense, repeatedly extending points until she forced a mistake. The Russian finished with only 18 unforced errors to 55 for Williams.