Jannik Sinner will face Jiri Lehecka in the Miami Open final on Sunday, March 29. As the Indian Wells champion, Sinner is seeking completion of the Sunshine Double with a win in Miami.

Aryna Sabalenka won the Sunshine Double on Saturday.

Winning the Sunshine Double is far from an everyday occurrence. Seven men and five women have done it in tennis history since its inception in 1985. An even rarer occurrence is if the men’s and women’s singles champion wins it in the same year. That has only happened three times, once per decade.

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Pete Sampras and Steffi Graf, 1994

Sampras won the Sunshine Double once, but Graf went on to win it a second time in 1996.

Roger Federer and Kim Clijsters, 2005

2005 was the first of a three-peat of Sunshine Double wins for Federer, and the only one for Kim Clijsters.

Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka, 2016

Djokovic is a four-time Sunshine Double winner, and Azarenka, who has been curiously absent and without explanation in the 2026 WTA season, won it one time.

Jannik Sinner ? and Aryna Sabalenka, 2026

Sinner needs to defeat Lehecka to join Sabalenka in completing this feat in 2026. Both players are the best hardcourt players in their respective games, and the best of their generation, so there is no reason to believe that this could not be a repeat occurrence.

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A Sunshine Double doubles note

Americans have been curiously absent from making recent Sunshine Double history despite both tournaments being played in the US.

Taylor Townsend has an opportunity to make her own Sunshine Double history in women’s doubles if she and partner Katerina Siniakova defeat the Italian team of Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani in the Miami Open women’s doubles final.

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Aryna Sabalenka is the Miami Open champion, two weeks after winning Indian Wells. That makes her the Sunshine Double winner, a feat that is difficult to accomplish. Few have done it in tennis.

With her 24th title win, the four-time Grand Slam champion is cementing her legacy as one of the best women’s players, especially on hardcourts, in the history of the game.

Sabalenka, who recently got a dog named Ash and became engaged at Indian Wells, enjoys playing in the United States. She showed steely resolve and her excellent all around game in Saturday’s win over Coco Gauff.

Sabalenka is 5th women’s player to win Sunshine Double

Sabalenka joins four other players to win the Sunshine Double since its inception in 1985. Steffi Graf won it twice, an accomplishment that Sabalenka will try to match next year.

Kim Clijsters, Victoria Azarenka, and Iga Swiatek are the other Sunshine Double champions.

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Sabalenka is 1st player to complete singles and doubles Sunshine Double

Before Sabalenka became dominant in singles, she was a successful doubles player with partner Elise Mertens. The pair won the Sunshine Double in 2019. She won six doubles titles including two Grand Slams with Mertens.

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Could be 1st player to win all major US hardcourt titles in 12 months

The four major (WTA 1000 or Grand Slam) US hardcourt titles are the Indian Wells Open, Miami Open, Cincinnati Open, and US Open.

As the reigning US Open, Indian Wells, and Miami champion, Sabalenka could hold all four titles within a one year timespan if she wins the Cincinnati Open in August.

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