Sabalenka completes Indian Wells-Miami sweep

MIAMI — Aryna Sabalenka won her second straight Miami Open title on Sunday beating Coco Gauff 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 to complete a “Sunshine Double” Indian Wells-Miami sweep.

The world No. 1 from Belarus, fresh off her first triumph in the California desert, became the fifth woman – and the first since Iga Swiatek in 2022 – to win both of the elite early season hardcourt WTA 1000 titles.

“It means a lot,” Sabalenka said after joining Poland’s Swiatek, German great Steffi Graf, Belgian Kim Clijsters and fellow Belarusian Victoria Azarenka on the list of women to win both titles in the same year.

“My goal always been to put my name in the history, and I just did it.”

Sabalenka underscored her WTA dominance in a season in which her only defeat to date was her Australian Open finals loss to Elena Rybakina – who she went on to beat in the Indian Wells title match and in the semifinals here.

She handed Gauff her first career defeat in a hardcourt final.