Miami Open draw: Emma Raducanu and Iga Swiatek handed ‘very tough’ tests
The draw has been made for the Miami Open, with some intriguing matches lined up for the second event in the ‘Sunshine Double’.
With Russian teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva claiming a sensational victory in the first big event of this tennis month with a win against Aryna Sabalenka in the final of the Indian Wells WTA 1000 tournament, the women’s tour now set to move to the opposite side of America for next big event in Florida.
The draw for the WTA event has been made and Britain’s Emma Raducanu has been given a chance to pick up some valuable ranking points after she was drawn against a qualifier.
World No 206 Sayaka Ishii will be Raducanu’s first opponent, with the winner of that match set to take on No 8 seed Emma Navarro in the second round.
Raducanu lost against Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima in Indian Wells, as she admitted her preparations for that match were not ideal.
“It was just a very difficult match for me,” said Raducanu as she lost her sixth match out of nine played in 2025.
“I think it was tough conditions, difficult ball from my opponent. I tried to be aggressive, I tried to make the ball, but I guess it didn’t work today.
“I had great support around me. I was feeling pretty good. I think today was just a bit of a curveball, but I guess I am just going to move on.”
Raducanu didn’t play at the Miami Open last year after pulling out with an injury, so the 2021 US Open champion will have a big chance to pick up ranking points as she pushes to make a return to the top 50 of the WTA Rankings.
“It’s a tough draw,” said former British No 1 Laura Robson. “For Emma, if she comes through that first round, the seed in her section in Emma Navarro.
“So a very tough draw, as you would expect from a tournament of this calibre.”
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Andreeva will look to back up her sensational win in Indian Wells by collecting a third successive WTA 1000 tournament in Miami and she will have a bye in the first round.
A match against Veronika Kudermetova or Wang Xiyu will wait for Andreeva when she gets to Miami, with America’s Amansa Anisimova a possible third round rival.
At the top of the draw, No 1 seed Sabalenka will face either America’s Caty McNally or Bulgaria’s Viktoriya Tomova in her opening match and like Andreeva and all the primary seeds, the Belarusian will have a bye in round one.
No 2 seed Iga Swiatek could face a battle with France’s Caroline Garcia in her first match, with Britain’s Katie Boulter a possible third round opponent for the Polish star.
Meanwhile, America’s Coco Gauff could face a battle against former Grand Slam winner Sofia Kenin in her opening match.
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