MIAMI — Winning Indian Wells and Miami is reserved for the greats. One of the toughest feats in tennis, considered by some even more difficult than winning a Grand Slam. Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka are one step away from achieving it.
“That’s definitely super tough. A Grand Slam is two weeks, and winning these tournaments means you have to play great for four weeks,” the world No. 1 told CLAY in Miami, coming off her Indian Wells title.
At the second WTA 1000 of the year, Sabalenka will have the chance to complete the Sunshine Double when she faces American Coco Gauff in Saturday’s final: “Playing great across two different conditions is really tricky and not easy at all. Tougher than a Grand Slam? It’s just so different, incomparable.”
Only eleven players have done it. Seven men and four women have managed to perform at the highest level for four weeks across two events that may look similar but are not. The challenge requires adapting to the dry conditions in California and the humidity in Florida during March.
Jim Courier, Michael Chang, Pete Sampras, Marcelo Ríos, Andre Agassi, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic on the men’s side; Steffi Graf, Kim Clijsters, Victoria Azarenka and Iga Swiatek on the women’s.
This weekend, that list could grow, with the Italian and the Belarusian reaching the final stages of the Miami Open. “I’m happy to put myself in this position, we’ll see how it goes,” Sinner said. The world No. 2 will face Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals, and if he advances, he will chase the Sunshine Double against France’s Arthur Fils or Czech player Jiri Lehecka.
“Winning these two very tough tournaments in a row is super difficult, but everything is possible,” Mirra Andreeva told CLAY.
The Russian surprised in 2025 by winning Indian Wells and had the chance to keep making history in the United States, but struggled to fully adapt to the change in conditions.
“I was obviously feeling confident when I came to Miami, but I didn’t have much time to prepare or adapt my game. It was my first time here and I didn’t know the conditions or even the surface, so it was a bit tough… I think great players can do it,” she said.
Few speak with more authority on the subject than Daniil Medvedev. He knows what it takes to win a Grand Slam (US Open 2021) and also came close to an unbeaten March in 2023.
“The Sunshine Double is tougher because a Grand Slam is just one tournament and this is two in a row,” he told CLAY.
Meanwhile, France’s Ugo Humbert highlights another factor: best-of-five sets.
“Both are really difficult, but maybe a Grand Slam is more difficult because it’s played best-of-five. Those are the best tournaments in the world,” he told CLAY.
For years, Masters 1000 finals were played as best-of-five sets. Today, the Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open are the only events that still use that format.
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