2023 Miami Open Recap: DC Stars Soar in Sunshine Double Finale

5 April 2023 By Washington Staff
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Masterful Daniil Medvedev Cools 2021 Mubadala Citi DC Open Champ Jannik Sinner for Maiden Miami Crown & Fifth ATP Masters 1000 Trophy

 

DC Champs Jessica Pegula & Coco Gauff End 22-Year All-American Women's Doubles Drought in Miami

 
The Sunshine Double came to a soaring conclusion for DC tennis fans this weekend in the Sunshine State, where Mubadala Citi DC Open's top stars and champions reached new heights at the 2023 Miami Open presented by Itaú.
After falling to Carlos Alcaraz two weeks ago in the Indian Wells final, 2019 Mubadala Citi DC Open finalist Daniil Medvedev raised his game at the second Masters event of the season in Miami Gardens. Playing his best tennis in recent memory, the former World No. 1 defeated 2021 Mubadala Citi DC Open champion Jannik Sinner, 7-5, 6-3, in the final on Sunday to win his maiden Miami Open crown and fifth ATP Masters 1000 trophy. 
The straight-sets victory was especially impressive given Sinner was also in smoking hot form, having previously eliminated World No. 6 and 2022 Citi Open semifinalist Andrey Rublev and Alcaraz in a three-set thriller to advance to the final.

 

"I'm really happy. Today was a tough match...I haven't won't such a big title in probably a year and a half," said Medvedev -- who won his last Masters title in Toronto in 2021 -- at the trophy ceremony in Hard Rock Stadium. "At the end, I was quite shaky. Not even tight, because I'm not scared to win, but I managed to get myself together and close the match."

Follow Daniil, Jannik & All Your Favorite Mubadala Citi DC Open Stars on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram @mubadalacitiDCopen & @mubadalacitiDC

 

 

 

 

With the milestone triumph, Medvedev improved to a 29-3 winning record this season, and on Monday, climbed to No. 4 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings and currently holds a 600-point lead over Novak Djokovic in the Live Race To Turin.

"It's the best start of the season I have ever had," said Medvedev. "I think 2019 was great also."

 

Medvedev won four titles in his breakout 2019 season, which began in DC with a run to the Citi Open final, where he fell to Nick Kyrgios in two tiebreak sets. But just over three months into the 2023 season, the 27-year-old has already equaled that mark with wins in Rotterdam, Doha, and Dubai, in addition to Miami, with plenty of time to add to that tally.

Of course, it's no secret that all Medvedev's wins this season have come on hard courts, his preferred surface.

"Generally, I love hard courts," said Medvedev, who won his sole Grand Slam title, to date, at the 2021 US Open and twice reached the Australian Open final in 2021 and 2022. "If it would be my choice, it would be only hard courts, but I completely understand that that's not fair."

His fiercest rivals agree.

"Now clay season starts. So, we'll see how you do there," Sinner teased during his runner-up speech in Hard Rock. "But I wish you all the best."

 

READ MORE on Medvedev's Sensational Start to 2023 at ATPTour.com

On the women's side, Mubadala Citi DC Open doubles champions and No. 2 seeds Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff became the first all-American duo to win the Miami Open doubles title in 22 years, after defeating Leylah Fernandez and Taylor Townsend, 7-6(6), 6-2, in Sunday's final.

The last all-American team to win Miami was Mary Joe Fernandez and Zina Garrison in 1991.

Miami is the second title of the season for Pegula and Gauff. The duo notched their first in a successful title defense in Doha in February. It is also the third WTA 1000 title for the pair.

READ MORE: Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula 'Redeem' South Florida with Miami Doubles Triumph | Tennis.com

Playing their first Miami main draw as a team, Pegula and Gauff came through with early-round wins over Brenda and Linda Fruhvirtova and Asia Muhammad and Anna Dalinina to reach the quarterfinals.

Then after rain delays led to a crunch in the schedule, the duo scored two wins in one day, defeating No. 6 seeds Elise Mertens and Storm Hunter, 6-7(4), 7-5, 10-2, and No. 8 seeds Nicole Melichar Martinez and Ellen Perez, 7-6(5), 7-6(1), to advance to the championship round.

 

"This tournament is one of those tournaments that you grow up watching, and I think it feels even more special than some of the other 1000s we won," said Gauff. "Doing it in front of our family, it means a lot."

 

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