Iga Swiatek won the Sunshine Double–Indian Wells and Miami–in 2022. Now Elena Rybakina will be hoping to accomplish the same feat this year after triumphing at the BNP Paribas Open this past Sunday.
Rybakina, who is up to No. 7 in the world and would be No. 3 if she had gotten 2,000 ranking points for winning Wimbledon last summer, could open with Anna Kalinskaya before facing Paula Badosa in the third round. Swiatek, whom the Kazakh defeated at both the Australian Open and in Indian Wells, is a potential quarterfinal opponent.
The draw is friendlier one in the bottom half, where two of my favorite picks reside.
Aryna Sabalenka (6/1 to win)
The world No. 2 and No. 2 seed in Miami, Sabalenka is obviously opposite Swiatek in the bracket. She is coming off a runner-up performance in Indian Wells, which continued an awesome start to the season that includes her first-ever Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. Sabalenka is 17-2 overall for the 2023 campaign. Conditions in the desert over the last fortnight were too slow for her big-hitting game and she still reached the final. They should be better for the Belarusian in Miami.
Paula Badosa (80/1 to win)
Injuries have been a problem for Badosa since the start of the hard-court summer in 2022, but she is healthy now and perhaps ready to turn things around. A quarter of the draw with both Swiatek and Rybakina isn’t easy, but Swiatek may be dealing with a rib injury and Rybakina has to make a quick turnaround after lifting the Indian Wells trophy. Last spring Badosa reached the semifinals in Indian Wells and the quarterfinals in Miami, so she knows how to play well this time of year.
Petra Kvitova (100/1 to win)
This is a longshot, but Kvitova’s game–even at 33 years old–is such that she can get beat anyone on any given day. When she gets hot, watch out. The Czech just advanced to the fourth round in Indian Wells, beating Jelena Ostapenko and Jessica Pegula in the process. Kvitova has never won Miami, but she is a three-time quarterfinalist (two in her last three appearances) and has not lost prior to the fourth round since 2016. She wouldn’t have to face Sabalenka until the semis and Swiatek or Rybakina until the final, so the draw is favorable.
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