The Miami Open moves from the desert to the East Coast this week as the ATP and WTA tours contest the second leg of the Sunshine Double. Hard Rock Stadium will host two weeks of top-level action, with Jakub Mensik and Aryna Sabalenka back to defend their titles.
Sabalenka arrived in Florida fresh from finally conquering her Indian Wells hoodoo, beating Elena Rybakina in a dramatic final to lift her 23rd career trophy. A successful title defense in Miami would give her the rare Sunshine Double — a feat only completed by four women up to now: Steffi Graf (1994, 1996), Kim Clijsters (2005), Victoria Azarenka (2016) and Iga Swiatek (2022). Martina Navratilova summed up why the double is so difficult: “With back-to-back two-week events, it’s tough to stay on top of it for so long, physically or emotionally. It’s a longer stretch of engagement.”
Jannik Sinner also arrives in good form after an emphatic Indian Wells week. He captured his first title of the year, beating Daniil Medvedev without dropping a set, and will be among those aiming to pull off the double on the men’s side.
British interest and entries
Emma Raducanu, Britain’s No. 1, withdrew on the eve of the tournament with illness as she continues to recover from post-viral symptoms picked up in the Middle East last month. Raducanu had been hoping to build on last year’s run to her first WTA 1000 quarter-final in Miami and could have faced compatriot Sonay Kartal in the second round.
Kartal becomes the leading British woman in the draw after a run to the last 16 in Indian Wells; she opens against American Peyton Stearns. Katie Boulter earned direct entry and meets Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maniero in round one, with a potential second-round clash against 17th seed Clara Tauson on the horizon. The 29-year-old Boulter, who won her fourth tour-level title at Ostrava last month, is in a quarter that also features Karolina Muchova and Iga Swiatek.
Fran Jones completes the British women’s line-up and faces a headline-grabbing first-round match against 45-year-old Venus Williams.
On the men’s side, Jack Draper leads the British challenge. Draper reached the quarter-finals at the BNP Paribas Open while defending his Indian Wells crown and notched his first career win over Novak Djokovic in a gruelling fourth-round match. Seeded 25th in Miami, he has a bye into round two and will face the winner of Reilly Opelka and Nuno Borges. Sixth seed Taylor Fritz could be a third-round opponent; a fourth-round meeting with Casper Ruud — whom Draper beat in last year’s Indian Wells final — is possible, with a potential quarter-final against world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz further down the line.
New British No. 1 Cam Norrie is drawn in the opposite half and could meet Sinner in the fourth round if both progress. Four British men — Jack Pinnington Jones, Billy Harris, Jay Clarke and Arthur Fery — are contesting the qualifying rounds for a spot in the main draw.
Logistics and withdrawals
Day sessions in Miami start at 11:00 local time (4:00pm UK time) and night sessions at 19:00 local (midnight UK time).
Notable absences include Novak Djokovic, who has withdrawn from the event citing a right shoulder injury. The 38-year-old, beaten by Draper at Indian Wells, chose to skip the second leg of the Sunshine Double. Djokovic is a six-time Miami champion and was last year’s finalist, losing to Jakub Mensik.
Top seed and favourite Carlos Alcaraz will head the men’s draw when the tournament gets under way on Wednesday.
How to watch
The Miami Open is broadcast live on Sky Sports and is available to stream via NOW and the Sky Sports app.