Sabalenka’s Sunshine Double
Aryna Sabalenka defended the Miami Open, beating Coco Gauff 6‑2, 4‑6, 6‑3 to complete the women’s 'Sunshine Double' (Indian Wells + Miami) — she’s now only the fifth woman in WTA history to do it. Gauff reached the final despite an arm issue, and the men’s final will pair Jannik Sinner vs. Jiri Lehecka with Sinner chasing the men’s Sunshine Double (bbc.com) (espn.com).
Sabalenka’s March haul added titles No. 23 and No. 24 to her career total and included what the WTA called her 11th WTA 1000 trophy, with roughly $2.3 million earned across Indian Wells and Miami this month. (wtatennis.com) Stat line from the final shows Sabalenka served 3 aces and 0 double faults while Gauff served 5 aces and 7 double faults, and Gauff actually won 94 total points to Sabalenka’s 82 across the match. (tennisstats.com) The head‑to‑head between the pair moved to 7–6 in Sabalenka’s favour after Miami, the latest result in what has become a tightly contested rivalry. (tennisstats.com) Gauff arrived in Miami after an MRI and described the issue as a nerve‑related arm problem — she said the sensation felt like a “firework” and had retired from her Indian Wells match against Alexandra Eala because of the pain. (si.com) The Miami Open pays the singles champion $1,151,380 and 1,000 WTA points, while the runner‑up receives $612,340 and 650 points under the tournament’s 2026 payout and points structure. (matchstat.com) Sabalenka now sits alongside the only other women to complete the Indian Wells–Miami sweep: Steffi Graf (1994, 1996), Kim Clijsters (2005), Victoria Azarenka (2016) and Iga Swiatek (2022). (tennis.com) On the men’s side, No. 2 Jannik Sinner reached the Miami final by beating Alexander Zverev 6‑3, 7‑6 (7‑4) in the semis and will face 22nd‑seed Jiri Lehecka, who reached the last four without being broken and served six aces in his semi‑final. (espn.com)
