Scouting Report: Alcaraz chases 'Sunshine Double'; Sinner, Medvedev compete in Miami

Peter Staples/ATP Tour

Fresh off his trophy triumph in Indian Wells, Carlos Alcaraz will look to complete the Sunshine Double when he takes to court at the Miami Open presented by Itau.

In a stacked field, Jannik Sinner and Daniil Medvedev will chase title success in Florida at the second ATP Masters 1000 event of the year, held at Hard Rock Stadium from 20-31 March.

ATPTour.com looks at 10 things to watch at the outdoor hard-court event in south Florida.

1) Alcaraz chasing Sunshine Double: After a slow start to the season, Alcaraz returned to top form in Indian Wells, where he successfully defended his title to clinch his fifth ATP Masters 1000 crown. The Spaniard is just the second player to win five Masters 1000 titles before turning 21, with countryman Rafael Nadal the other. High on confidence, the 2022 Miami champion will aim to become the eighth man to win the ‘Sunshine Double’ and the first since Roger Federer in 2017.

2) Can Sinner respond? Sinner’s perfect 16-0 start to the season came to an end on Saturday when Alcaraz overcame the Italian in the Indian Wells semi-finals to level the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series at 4-4. The 22-year-old also lost ground in the race for No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings, with Alcaraz arriving in Miami holding a 495-point cushion against Sinner. The Italian, who won his first major title at the Australian Open in January, is a two-time finalist in Miami (2021, ’23). Can he break his duck in Florida this fortnight?

3) Defending champ Medvedev: Medvedev reached the final and lost to Alcaraz in the Indian Wells final for the second consecutive year. After falling in the title match in California last year the 28-year-old went to Miami and clinched the crown. Holding a 14-3 record on the year, Medvedev will hope history repeats itself this season.

4) Zverev, Rune chasing first titles of the season, Rublev seeking return to form:Alexander Zverev and Holger Rune will try to win their first singles titles of 2024 in Miami. Zverev helped lead Germany to United Cup glory in January but has failed to advance past the semi-final stage at any tour-level singles events in 2024, losing at the last-four stage in Melbourne and Los Cabos. The German’s best result in Miami was a final showing in 2018.

Rune is 13-6 on the season and arrives in Miami off the back of a quarter-final result in Indian Wells. The Dane also reached the final in Brisbane earlier this season. Andrey Rublev won in Hong Kong at the start of the year but has failed to reach a final in any of his next five events. He lost in the third round in Indian Wells.

5) Will Ruud or De Minaur clinch first Masters 1000 crown? Casper Ruud and Alex de Minaur have won 18 tour-level titles between them but neither have triumphed at a Masters 1000 event. Ruud, currently No. 8 in the PIF ATP Rankings, reached the final in Miami in 2022. De Minaur has won seven of his past eight matches (Acapulco title) with his best result at a Masters 1000 event a final run in Toronto last season.

6) American Charge: Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe will lead American hopes on home soil in Florida. Fritz reached the quarters in Miami last year, while Paul arrives in form, having advanced to his second Masters 1000 semi-final in Indian Wells. Shelton is 10-6 on the season, and Tiafoe is looking for an upturn in results, having won consecutive tour-level matches at just one event this season (Delray Beach).

7) #NextGenATP stars in action: Arthur Fils, Alex Michelsen and Luca Van Assche all compete in Indian Wells. Fils, 19, produced some of his best tennis to reach the third round in Indian Wells, while 19-year-old American Michelsen won his maiden Masters 1000 match in California. Both will aim to carry that form into Miami, where they make their debuts. Van Assche, 19, arrives in Miami off the back of a run to the semi-finals at the ATP Challenger Tour 175 event in Phoenix.

8) Former winners Hurkacz, Murray compete: Alongside Medvedev and Alcaraz, Hubert Hurkacz and Andy Murray are the only other former champions in the draw. World No. 9 Hurkacz, who triumphed in 2021, will try to bounce back from an opening-round loss to Gael Monfils in Indian Wells. Murray won the title in Miami in 2009 and 2013. The Scot has earned three tour-level victories in 2024.

9) Others to watch: Matteo Berrettini reached the final in Phoenix last week and will return to tour-level action for the first time since the US Open last September. The Italian is joined in the draw by wild card Kei Nishikori. The 34-year-old has not played a match since last July in Atlanta. World No. 15 Ugo Humbert and No. 19 Sebastian Baez have both won two tour-level titles this season and are in action, alongside former Masters 1000 champions Stefanos Tsitsipas and Grigor Dimitrov.

10) Bopanna/Ebden lead doubles field: Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden will lead the doubles field as the top seeds. Wesley Koolhof and Nikola Mektic arrive after lifting the trophy in Indian Wells. Ivan Dodig/Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram/Joe Salisbury also team in Florida.