Miami, March 29: Aryna Sabalenka has claimed the Miami Open title, defeating world number four Coco Gauff with a score of 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 in the final match. Following Iga Swiatek, Sabalenka has become the first player to complete the ‘Sunshine Double’.
This victory marks her second consecutive Miami Open title. Previously, only Ash Barty (2019 and 2021) and Serena Williams (2013 to 2015) have won this tournament back-to-back. With this achievement, Sabalenka has solidified her place among tennis legends. She is now the fifth woman to win both Indian Wells and Miami in the same season, joining the ranks of Steffi Graf, Kim Clijsters, Victoria Azarenka, and Iga Swiatek.
Since 2000, Sabalenka is the fourth player to reach the finals of her first four tournaments of the year, following Martina Hingis (2001), Serena Williams (2003), and Victoria Azarenka (2012). All these tournaments were played on hard courts, and she has won three of them, including Brisbane and the Sunshine Double. After her victory, Sabalenka expressed, “This title is very special. My goal has always been to make my mark in history, and I have just done that. It sounds very strange to hear. I don’t know how I managed to do it, but I am very proud right now. Of course, I am very happy with this beautiful trophy.”
This win marks her 24th WTA singles title and her overall 30th title, which includes six doubles titles. Among these are four Grand Slam singles titles, two doubles titles, and 11 WTA 1000 singles titles, including one from Miami in 2019. Sabalenka has long been the world number one and her position has now been further strengthened. She has spent a total of 83 weeks as the world number one, including an impressive ongoing streak of 75 weeks.
On Monday, she will remain number one for the 76th consecutive week, surpassing Iga Swiatek’s record for the longest reign at number one. However, she still trails Ash Barty, who held the number one position for 114 weeks from September 2019 to March 2022, a period during which the rankings were paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic.