A baby was bawling, and Sony Ericsson Open quarterfinalist David Ferrer wasn’t too happy, either. Trailing in his match and annoyed by the crying, Ferrer directed a forehand lob toward the infant after losing his serve midway through the second set Wednesday. The ball didn’t come close to the youngster when it landed in the stands, but the crying stopped.

Mardy Fish has claimed the No. 1 American ranking in men’s tennis by reaching the semifinals at the Sony Ericsson Open. Fish beat David Ferrer 7-5, 6-2 on Wednesday. Fish will climb to at least 11th, a career best, in the next ranking, while Andy Roddick will fall from eighth to 14th after losing his opening match last week.

Maria Sharapova has won a 31/2-hour marathon to earn a semifinal berth at the Sony Ericsson Open. Sharapova rallied to beat No. 26-seeded Alexandra Dulgheru 3-6, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5) in a match that ended at 12:19 a.m. Sharapova’s opponent Thursday will be No. 21 Andrea Petkovic, who reached the semifinals with her second upset in two days, beating No.

After a succession of marathons at the Sony Ericsson Open, Roger Federer hurried into the quarterfinals. Long matches pushed Federer’s start into early Wednesday morning, and he wrapped up a victory at 1:29 a.m., needing just 52 minutes to beat qualifier Olivier Rochus 6-3, 6-1. Federer couldn’t remember ever starting a match so late.

On the verge of victory, Mardy Fish took a lusty swing and then staggered behind the baseline, his left calf cramping and his ability to continue in doubt. Three points later he limped into the quarterfinals, the last American standing at the Sony Ericsson Open. A gimpy Fish whacked a service winner on match point to beat Juan Martin del Potro 7-5, 7-6 (5).

Andy Murray split with part-time coaching consultant Alex Corretja and will try to halt the worst skid of his career. The fifth-ranked Murray has worked with Corretja since 2008 in a bid to improve his clay-court game, but the pair have mutually agreed to end their relationship. The Scottish player is heading into the clay-court season after getting knocked out in opening matches at Rotterdam,…

With her dubious No. 1 ranking secure for at least three more weeks, Caroline Wozniacki’s taking a break. Her enforced vacation began Monday when she lost in the fourth round at the Sony Ericsson Open to Andrea Petkovic of Germany, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3. “I’m just going to take a few days of rest now,” Wozniacki said.

Mardy Fish might leave Key Biscayne as the top-ranked American in men’s tennis, a prospect that leaves him unconvinced. “I wouldn’t be the No. 1 American really,” said Fish, who beat No. 17 seed Richard Gasquet 6-4, 6-3 in the third round of the Sony Ericsson Open on Sunday. Fish is ranked a career-best 15th, and if he wins two more rounds he’ll overtake longtime friend Andy…

Facing match point and feeling lousy, Andy Roddick bent over behind the baseline with his hands on his thighs, looking like someone desperately needing to take a seat in the shade. That’s where he was headed one point later. An ailing Roddick lost his opening match Saturday at the Sony Ericsson Open to Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay, 6-4, 7-6 (4).

Dwyane Wade and LeBron James tried a different sort of courtside view on Saturday night. At tennis. The Miami Heat stars showed up at the Sony Ericsson Open to be part of a coin toss before world No. 1 Rafael Nadal played against Japan’s Kei Nishikori. Wade’s two sons, Zaire — the actual flipper of the coin — and Zion, were there as well, on the court for handshakes from Nadal and a quick…