Miami , March 30, (V7N) — World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka won the Miami Open Saturday, beating American Jessica Pegula 7-5 6-2 in the Women’s Tennis Association 1000 final at Hard Rock Stadium.


The title was the Belarusian's first at Miami and her second of the season following her January triumph in Brisbane.


Having lost the final at Indian Wells to Russian 17-year old Mirra Andreeva earlier this month, Sabalenka was determined not to fall at the last hurdle again.

"Winning this trophy is super special," said Sabalenka, who paid tribute to Pegula's performance after repeating her win over her from last year's US Open final.

Both players struggled to hold their serve in the first set, which saw seven breaks of serve, with Pegula causing Sabalenka some trouble when she brought her up to the net.

But the momentum shifted when Pegula was serving to stay in the set at 6-5 down and Sabalenka produced a delicate forehand drop and then a superb down the line winner to take the set.


Once she recovered from being broken on her first service game of the second set, it was easier going for Sabalenka, whose bid for a third straight Australian Open title was thwarted in the Melbourne final by Madison Keys earlier this year.

Sabalenka broke twice to go 3-1 up and never looked in danger from that point on as she wrapped up the win in one hour 27 minutes.

"I think I was able to completely forget about (it being) the final, about the outside things and I was just so focused on the game," said Sabalenka.

In her last 14 matches against top 10 players, Sabalanka has won 12 and she credited her ability in the clutch moments for her record.

"It is all about those key moments of the match, about playing aggressive and staying with the game plan, going for shots without being afraid of losing the point," she said.

It was the third time that Pegula has faced Sabalenka in a final and she has lost on all three occasions.

The 26-year old Sabalenka has now won eight WTA 1000 titles and 19 titles on the WTA Tour overall - 17 of which have come on hard courts including all three of her Grand Slam singles titles - the 2023 Australian Open, the 2024 Australian Open and the 2024 US Open.

The men's final Sunday will feature Novak Djokovic up against Czech 19-year old Jakub Mensik with the Serb looking for his 100th professional title.

 

END/MSS/AJ