TIE-BREAKFAST - 28/03 Miami Open

Good morning and welcome back to TIE-Breakfast: all the tennis you need at breakfast.

Ace Cream's daily newsletter during Masters 1000 and Grand Slams, every morning at 8:30.

Today is Saturday, March 28, in Miami it's 03:30 and it's 21 degrees. Alright, let's go.

Today at breakfast

• 🇮🇹 Sinner beats Zverev for the seventh time in a row and reaches the final: the Sunshine Double is one step away
• 🇨🇿 Lehecka demolishes Fils 6-2 6-2 and reaches his first Masters 1000 final
• 🇮🇹 Bolelli and Vavassori in the doubles final: a first at a Masters 1000 for the Italian pair
• 🇧🇾 Sabalenka vs Gauff tonight for the WTA title: head-to-head tied at 6-6

WHAT HAPPENED OVERNIGHT:

🇮🇹 Sinner Into The Final, The Sunshine Double Is Ninety Minutes Away

Jannik Sinner defeated Alexander Zverev 6-3, 7-6(4) in one hour and 53 minutes, with 15 aces, zero double faults, and 79% of first serve points won. Seventh consecutive win in the head-to-head against the German, thirty-second set won in a row at Masters 1000 events.

The match told an interesting story, especially in the second set. Zverev raised his level, saved two break points at 4-4, and took Sinner to a tiebreak, which is the best anyone has managed against him in this tournament. And yet, even in that tiebreak, the feeling was that Sinner had a margin, an ability to play the big points with a calm that doesn't seem constructed but simply present. "Coming here, trying to produce some good tennis, that was my main goal. Standing here again, in the final, means very, very much to me," he said after the match, with the tone of someone who knows there's still one step to go but doesn't want to think about it too much. No one has completed the Sunshine Double since Federer in 2017: tomorrow, against Lehecka, Sinner will have the chance to do it.

🇨🇿 Lehecka Dominates Fils And Reaches His First Masters 1000 Final

Jiri Lehecka defeated Arthur Fils 6-2, 6-2 in 75 minutes, without losing his serve once in the entire tournament. Six aces, zero double faults, four breaks from ten opportunities: numbers that tell the story of a technical dominance before a physical one.

The most striking statistic, perhaps, is the serving solidity: Lehecka is the first player since 2018 (Djokovic in Shanghai) to reach a Masters 1000 final without being broken in the entire tournament. Fils, who had reached the semifinal by saving four match points against Paul, never got into the match, and Lehecka gave the impression of someone who knows exactly where he wants to go. "It was one of the better matches that I played in my life," he said afterwards, and his run through this tournament seems to tell the story of a player who has made a leap that goes beyond the result itself. On Sunday, Sinner awaits him, against whom he has lost all four previous meetings without winning a set.

🇮🇹 Bolelli And Vavassori In The Doubles Final: A First At A Masters 1000

Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori defeated Arends and Smith 6-3, 6-4 in the semifinal, reaching the first Masters 1000 final in their history as a pair. They will face Heliovaara and Patten, the fourth seeds, who eliminated world number ones Granollers and Zeballos.

The head-to-head is not encouraging, five losses in six meetings against the Finnish-British pair, but the tournament has shown a particularly solid and confident version of the Italian duo. For Bolelli, it's his fourth Masters 1000 doubles final in his career; for Vavassori, his first: this afternoon, at 5:30 PM Italian time, they will have the chance to add an important title to a season that is heading in an interesting direction.

WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY:

• Bolelli/Vavassori vs Heliovaara/Patten (11:30 local, 5:30 PM Italian time) — ATP doubles final. First Masters 1000 final for the Italian pair. The head-to-head says 1-5 in favor of the opponents, but form and a neutral crowd could change things.
• Gauff vs Sabalenka (not before 3:00 PM local, 9:00 PM Italian time) — WTA singles final. Thirteenth meeting, head-to-head tied 6-6. Sabalenka is chasing the Sunshine Double (she would be the fifth woman to achieve it after Graf, Clijsters, Azarenka, and Swiatek), Gauff her first title at her home tournament. In a rivalry that has produced memorable Slam finals, this could be the most significant match of the hardcourt season.
• Tomorrow: Sinner vs Lehecka (ATP singles final, Sunday March 29) and Errani/Paolini vs Siniakova/Townsend (WTA doubles final). Four Italians in three finals at Miami: a stat that speaks for itself.

Further reading

• ATP Miami: Sinner one step away from the Sunshine Double. Zverev falls for the seventh time in a row
• Jannik Sinner continues Alexander Zverev domination, reaches Miami final
• Jiri Lehecka sinks Arthur Fils in Miami to reach maiden Masters 1000 final
• Sabalenka vs. Gauff: Everything to know about the Miami Open final
• ATP/WTA Miami, Saturday March 28 schedule: Bolelli/Vavassori for the title at 5:30 PM, Gauff-Sabalenka at 8 PM

Enjoy your breakfast and have a great day.

See you tomorrow at 08:30 with TIE-Breakfast