Aryna Sabalenka Wins First Miami Open Title \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ Top seed Aryna Sabalenka captured her first Miami Open title with a 7-5, 6-2 win over Jessica Pegula. The win marks her second title of the year and 19th overall. Despite Pegula’s local ties and crowd support, Sabalenka dominated with 22 forehand winners.
Aryna Sabalenka Miami Open Victory Quick Looks:
- Sabalenka defeats Pegula 7-5, 6-2 for Miami crown
- First Miami Open title and 19th career championship
- Match was a rematch of the 2024 U.S. Open final
- Sabalenka hit 22 forehand winners, including match point
- Sabalenka now leads Pegula 7-2 in head-to-head series
- Pegula had crowd support as Boca Raton resident
- Both struggled to hold serve in a chaotic first set
- Rain delay pushed the women’s final start time past 4 p.m.
Deep Look
Aryna Sabalenka’s triumph at the 2025 Miami Open not only delivered her long-awaited first title at the tournament but also served as a defining moment in what has already been a roller-coaster season. On Saturday, the Belarusian world No. 1 captured her 19th career title with a commanding 7-5, 6-2 win over American Jessica Pegula, showcasing both mental resolve and physical dominance in one of the sport’s most high-profile events.
The victory marked a breakthrough in Miami for Sabalenka, who had never previously won the title despite her consistently high-ranking presence on the WTA Tour. The win also served as a confident response to recent finals heartbreaks—she had reached four finals this year and lost in three of them, including the Australian Open and Indian Wells. Only a title in Brisbane stood on her 2025 résumé prior to Saturday.
Facing Pegula in a rematch of the 2024 U.S. Open final, which Sabalenka also won, the 26-year-old came into the match with a clear upper hand both statistically and psychologically. Sabalenka led their head-to-head 6–2 and extended that dominance to 7–2 with Saturday’s victory, winning her third straight match over the American.
The final, delayed by over an hour due to rain during the men’s doubles match, began with both players struggling to hold serve in a turbulent first set. Sabalenka and Pegula traded breaks a combined seven times, underscoring the intensity of their shot-making and the tension of the occasion. Pegula led 3–2 with a break in hand but failed to consolidate, and Sabalenka took full control late in the set. At 5–5, Sabalenka held at love, then broke Pegula at love with a barrage of clean winners—two of which came at the net, a testament to her expanding all-court game.
The momentum shift was palpable. Sabalenka, feeding off the energy of her powerful groundstrokes—particularly her lethal forehand, which produced 22 winners—settled into a rhythm and never looked back. Her signature backhand passing shot on match point sealed the win, and she raised her hands skyward, a visible expression of both joy and relief.
The $1.1 million winner’s prize capped off a week of confident, aggressive play from Sabalenka, who now lives in Miami. The home-field advantage was tempered by the fact that Pegula, a Boca Raton resident, had the crowd behind her. Pegula, 31, is one of the most popular American players on the tour, and her ties to the area—as the daughter of Buffalo Bills and Sabres owner Terry Pegula—added an extra layer of local interest. Among the spectators was NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, in town for the league’s owners meetings beginning Monday in nearby Palm Beach.
For Pegula, the match continued a familiar pattern: deep tournament runs that fall short against top-tier competition. Despite her tenacity and tactical intelligence, she was simply unable to match Sabalenka’s power and precision over the course of two sets. She has now lost all three of her most recent meetings against Sabalenka, including two in finals.
Sabalenka’s victory in Miami sends a strong message to her peers on tour: she remains the woman to beat, especially on hard courts. The Miami Open title, a notable missing piece in her trophy cabinet, now sits alongside her three Grand Slam titles, and gives her renewed momentum heading into the clay-court season, where she will look to continue building on her success.
It’s also a key moment in her larger career narrative. After ascending to No. 1, Sabalenka has faced enormous pressure to convert her consistency into big-stage dominance. The Miami Open, considered one of the most prestigious non-Slam events on the WTA calendar, provided the perfect platform for her to do so.
Her victory also helps to silence critics who questioned her ability to close out big finals this year, particularly after her heartbreaking loss to Iga Swiatek in Melbourne and a surprise defeat at Indian Wells. With Miami now under her belt, Sabalenka can look forward with confidence—and with the kind of momentum that could make her a favorite not only in the upcoming Madrid and Rome tournaments but also at Roland Garros.
Beyond the rankings and titles, what stood out most in Miami was Sabalenka’s composure. In a high-stakes environment, with a rain delay and a partisan crowd, she remained calm, focused, and clinical. That mental evolution—combined with her physical prowess—may well define her next phase of dominance on the tour.
For Pegula, the result is another painful reminder of how close she is to breaking into the elite tier, yet how far she remains from consistently winning at the highest level. Still, her deep run in Miami keeps her in the mix for future titles and reinforces her place among the WTA’s most consistent performers.
As the 2025 WTA season marches on, the Miami Open once again proved its reputation as a battleground for the sport’s best. And this time, Aryna Sabalenka stood tall, trophy in hand, as the undisputed champion in South Florida.
Aryna Sabalenka Wins Aryna Sabalenka Wins
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