Aryna Sabalenka had an eventful March in which she got engaged, adopted a dog, and won the Sunshine Double, a feat that involves winning titles at the Indian Wells Open and the Miami Open back to back in the same year. She recently opened up about her experience of navigating “one of the best months” of her life.
Aryna Sabalenka Reflects on the ‘Best Month’ of Her Life After Winning the Miami Open
Sabalenka recently concluded her run in the North American hard-court swing, with the last tournament being the 2026 Miami Open. She was the top seed, and she began her campaign in the second round after receiving a first-round bye. She defeated Ann Li (7-6 (5), 6-4), Caty McNally (6-4, 6-2), Zheng Qinwen (6-3, 6-4), Hailey Baptiste (6-4, 6-4), and Elena Rybakina (6-4, 6-3) to reach the final.
In the championship match, the world No. 1 defeated Coco Gauff with a score of 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, winning the tournament and claiming her 11th WTA 1000 title. With this victory, she became the fifth woman to complete the Sunshine Double, having earlier won Indian Wells by overcoming Rybakina in the final. She also completed the Sunshine Double in the doubles event in 2019 alongside Elise Mertens.
After winning the 2026 Miami Open title, Sabalenka reflected on her eventful month during a post-match interview with Tennis Channel. She said she couldn’t imagine a better March than the one she had this year, calling it “one of the best months” of her life.
The four-time singles Grand Slam champion mentioned her engagement to Georgis Frangulis, adopting a brown-and-white Cavalier King Charles Spaniel puppy named Ash, and winning the Sunshine Double, all within the same month. She described the month as “crazy” and noted that it was so packed that she didn’t have a moment to pause and realize what had just happened.
“I don’t know what can be better than this month. It’s definitely one of the best months of my life. And yeah, dog, engagement, Sunshine Double. That’s just like, I don’t know, it’s crazy. I didn’t have a moment to stop and realize what just happened to me in March, but it was definitely the best month of my life. And, you know, I’ll just try to do my very best,” Sabalenka said.
Looking ahead, Sabalenka is expected to compete in the 2026 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, scheduled for April 11 to April 19, 2026. The tournament matches will be held on indoor clay courts at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart, Germany.
In addition to the world No. 1, other players expected to compete at the WTA 500 tournament include Gauff, Jasmine Paolini, Zheng Qinwen, Elina Svitolina, Mirra Andreeva, defending champion Jeļena Ostapenko, and former champions like Rybakina and Iga Świątek, among others.
Sabalenka’s best result at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix has been runner-up, which she achieved in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2025.
