Preview: Aryna Sabalenka vs. Coco Gauff - Miami Open prediction, head-to-head, tournament so far

A Sunshine Double is at stake for world number one Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday, when she battles home favourite Ccoo Gauff in a mouth-watering Miami Open women's singles final.

Both the Belarusian and the American made light work of their semi-final foes, as Sabalenka took down Elena Rybakina in two sets while Gauff dropped just two games in a Karolina Muchova mauling.

Match preview

Tipped to get the job done against Rybakina in three - as was the case when the two brute forces locked horns in the final of the Indian Wells Open earlier this month - Sabalenka's semi-final success over her Kazakhstani opponent was more straightforward than many expected.

The world number one blasted her way to a 6-4 6-3 victory in a mere 78 minutes, firing nine aces past her beleaguered competitor and winning 83% of her first-serve points, compared to a measly 56% for Rybakina.

Progressing to the showpiece event at each of her first four WTA Tour tournaments of the 2026 season, having battled for glory in Melbourne, Brisbane and most recently California, Sabalenka is just two sets away from joining incredibly esteemed company.

Indeed, only 11 singles players have ever completed the Sunshine Double - winning both the Miami and Indian Wells tournaments in one season - including just four women in Steffi Graf, Victoria Azarenka, Kim Clijsters and most recently Iga Swiatek.

Furthermore, Sabalenka is on the verge of defending the Miami Open title without dropping a single set, whereas her upcoming final foe has experienced her fair share of bumps on the road in the 2026 edition.

While Sabalenka saw off Ann Li, Caty McNally, Qinwen Zheng and Hailey Baptiste with relative ease, all of Gauff's first four Miami Open matches with Elisabetta Cocciaretto, Alycia Parks, Sorana Cirstea and Belinda Bencic went the distance.

Twice Gauff came from a set down to prevail in three, and twice the home favourite recovered from a second-set blip to take the decider, but she broke her three-set trend in merciless fashion when Muchova came to play.

The reigning French Open champion dismantled her Czech counterpart 6-1 6-1 in just under 90 minutes, during which she was broken right at the start but responded with an emphatic 10-game winning streak in the semi-final.

A belated maiden Miami final now awaits Gauff, who had failed to even progress past the fourth round before the 2026 season, and the 22-year-old is the youngest American woman to qualify for the showpiece event since Serena Williams in 2003, before she was even born.

Gauff's record in finals also makes for extremely pleasant reading for the American faithful, as she has won 11 of her 14 WTA singles championship matches, including a 100% record from nine hard-court finals.

Tournament so far

Aryna Sabalenka:

First round: Bye

Second round: vs. Ann Li 7-6[5] 6-4

Third round: vs. Caty McNally 6-4 6-2

Round of 16: vs. Qinwen Zheng 6-3 6-4

Quarter-final: vs. Hailey Baptiste 6-4 6-4

Semi-final: vs. Elena Rybakina 6-4 6-3

Coco Gauff:

First round: Bye

Second round: vs. Elisabetta Cocciaretto 3-6 6-4 6-3

Third round: vs. Alycia Parks 3-6 6-0 6-1

Round of 16: vs. Sorana Cirstea 6-4 3-6 6-2

Quarter-final: vs. Belinda Bencic 6-3 1-6 6-3

Semi-final: vs. Karolina Muchova 6-1 6-1

Head To Head

WTA Finals (2025) - Round Robin: Sabalenka wins 7-6[5] 6-2

French Open (2025) - Final: Gauff wins 6-7[5] 6-2 6-4

Madrid Open (2025) - Final: Sabalenka wins 6-3 7-6[3]

WTA Finals (2024) - Semi-finals: Gauff wins 7-6[4] 6-3

Wuhan Open (2024) - Semi-finals: Sabalenka wins 1-6 6-4 6-4

Australian Open (2024) - Semi-finals: Sabalenka wins 7-6[2] 6-4

US Open (2023) - Final: Gauff wins 2-6 6-3 6-2

Indian Wells Open (2023) - Quarter-finals: Sabalenka wins 6-4 6-0

Toronto Open (2022) - Last 16: Gauff wins 7-5 4-6 7-6[4]

Italian Open (2021) - Last 16: Gauff wins 7-5 6-3

Ostrava (2020) - Last 16: Sabalenka wins 1-6 7-5 7-6[2]

Lexington (2020) - Last 16: Gauff wins 7-6[4] 4-6 6-4

The head-to-head column could not be more evenly-poised between Sabalenka and Gauff, as from 12 previous singles meetings on the WTA Tour, both players boast six triumphs apiece.

Saturday's showdown marks the pair's first meeting in 2026, after Sabalenka took down her younger foe in straight sets in the 2025 WTA Finals, earning belated revenge for her French Open heartbreak.

The Belarusian also leads the way 5-4 in their hard-court clashes, in addition to coming up trumps in their last WTA 1000 final - a straight-sets success in Madrid last year.

We say: Sabalenka to win in three sets

If Gauff was at all fatigued against Muchova following four straight three-setters, she certainly did not show it, although taking on a refreshed and in-form Sabalenka is a different kettle of fish entirely.

Owing to the ease in the way the Belarusian eliminated Rybakina, and the fact that Gauff's hit-and-miss serve will always provide the world number one with opportunities for cheap points on double faults or venomous second-serve returns, Sabalenka has our vote to join the Sunshine Double club.