Miami Open: ‘Sunshine Double’ dreams alive as Sinner breaks record, Sabalenka beats Zheng
The Italian men’s world No 2 and Belarusian women’s No 1 are bidding to join an elite band who have won Indian Wells, Miami Open back to back
Jannik Sinner set a record for consecutive sets won at ATP Masters 1000 events as the Italian and Aryna Sabalenka kept their “Sunshine Double” dreams alive with emphatic victories at the ATP/WTA Miami Open on Monday.
Sinner and Sabalenka are bidding to join an elite band of players who have won Indian Wells and the Miami Open back to back, and arrived in Florida brimming with confidence after their respective victories in the California desert earlier this month.
World No 2 Sinner beat French 30th seed Corentin Moutet 6-4, 6-1 to reach the last 16, making it 26 sets in a row without defeat at this level.
Sinner, who is chasing a second victory in Miami after lifting the title in 2024, needed just an hour and 12 minutes to secure victory and will face Alex Michelsen for a spot in the quarter-finals.
Women’s world No 1 Sabalenka, defending the Miami title she won for the first time last year, cruised into the quarter-finals with a 6-3, 6-4 demolition of China’s 2024 Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen.
The Belarusian is aiming to become only the fifth woman to complete the Indian Wells-Miami double after Steffi Graf, Kim Clijsters, Victoria Azarenka and Iga Swiatek.