Miami Open: What is the ‘Sunshine Double’ and can Jannik Sinner & Aryna Sabalenka achieve it?
Aryna Sabalenka and Jannik Sinner triumphed in Indian Wells this past weekend, though they will have immediately set their sights on success elsewhere.
Both Sabalenka and Sinner will immediately return to action this coming week at the Miami Open, where they will hope to join an esteemed group of players to achieve the ‘Sunshine Double’ — one of the most challenging feats in the sport.
Here, we look at the history behind the Sunshine Double, and who both Sabalenka and Sinner could emulate should they find success.
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What is the Sunshine Double?
The Sunshine Double is one of the most prestigious feats any player can achieve on hard courts, and it involves winning in both Indian Wells and Miami in the same season.
Traditionally, the two prestigious events have run back-to-back, meaning players have to go on a significant winning streak if they want to double up across both events.
You have to win the two tournaments in the same year to complete the Sunshine Double, and only 11 players have ever previously achieved the feat.
What men have achieved the Sunshine Double?
The Sunshine Double has been slightly more commonplace in the men’s game, with seven different men combining to achieve the feat on twelve separate occasions.
Should Sinner win in Miami this year, he would follow in the footsteps of the following:
Jim Courier (1991): In 1991, Courier became the first player — male or female — to complete the ‘Sunshine Double’, beating Guy Forget in Indian Wells and David Wheaton in Miami.
Michael Chang (1992): Former world No 2 Chang completed the same feat twelve months later, defeating Andrei Chesnokov in Indian Wells before victory over Alberto Mancini in Miami.
Pete Sampras (1994): Tennis icon Sampras defeated Petr Korda to lift the Indian Wells title in 1994, and then battled past long-time rival Andre Agassi to triumph in Miami two weeks later.
Marcelo Rios (1998): The only non-Grand Slam winner to complete the Sunshine Double, Rios defeated Greg Rusedski in Indian Wells before an impressive victory against Agassi in Miami.
Andre Agassi (2001): All-time great Agassi finally completed the feat in 2001, defeating Sampras to triumph in Indian Wells for the first time, before then downing Jan-Michael Gambill in the Miami Open final.
Roger Federer (2005-06, 2017): The dominant hard-court player of the 2000s, Federer completed the Sunshine Double in back-to-back years in 2005 and 2006, before repeating the feat during his resurgent 2017 season.
Novak Djokovic (2011, 2014-16): Tennis icon Djokovic has achieved the Sunshine Double on a staggering four occasions, first in 2011, then in consecutive years from 2014 to 2016.
What women have achieved the Sunshine Double?
The feat is less common in the women’s game, with only four women combining to achieve the Sunshine Double in five separate years.
If Sabalenke were to achieve the double, she would follow in the footsteps of:
Steffi Graf (1994 and 1996): All-time great Graf was the first woman to achieve the Sunshine Double and remains the only woman to do it twice, completing the feat in both 1994 and 1996.
Kim Clijsters (2005): After injury struggles in 2004, Clijsters surged back towards the top of the WTA by beating Lindsay Davenport in the Indian Wells final, before victory over Maria Sharapova in Miami.
Victoria Azarenka (2016): One of the leading hard-courters of her generation, former world No 1 Azarenka memorably beat Serena Williams to lift the Indian Wells title in 2016, and backed that up by defeating Svetlana Kuznetsova in Miami.
Iga Swiatek (2022): Current world No 3 Swiatek remains the last player — male or female — to do the double for now, beating Maria Sakkari to triumph in Indian Wells in 2022, before a Miami Open final win against Naomi Osaka.
Can Sabalenka and Sinner achieve it?
Sabalenka and Sinner will be among the favourites to triumph at the Miami Open this fortnight, and past results suggest they are more than strong contenders for victory.
WTA world No 1 Sabalenka is the reigning champion in Miami and is arguably the favourite in the women’s event, though her draw is far from straightforward.
Meanwhile, Sinner lifted the Miami Open title back in 2024 and was also a finalist in 2021 and 2023, though he could have to face 2022 champion and key rival Carlos Alcaraz if he wants to prevail once again.
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