WTA Tour players have been drawn for the second half of the “Sunshine Double” in Miami. Emma Raducanu, who won the US Open in 2021, has a great chance to move on.
Raducanu’s WTA rating is going to drop a lot. She will go to Miami ranked 288th, which is much lower than where she started. However, the 2021 US Open champion has a great chance to make a big jump in the next few weeks.
Since the 21-year-old won’t have to defend many points for the rest of 2024, she will move up quickly if she wins the big events she is going to even though she is ranked low.
Since she is not ranked, she could play some of the best players in the world, which will be tough. However, Raducanu is lucky because she was invited to play in the Miami Open as a qualifier.
Raducanu will first play Wang Xiyu, who is ranked 52nd in the world. In the second round, she could play Anna Kalinskaya, who is ranked 35th in the world.
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Kalinskaya, a Russian tennis star, proved she is in good shape by making it to the final of the WTA 1000 event in Dubai last month. She lost to Jasmine Paolini in the title match after qualifying for the tournament.
Kalinskaya also made it to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. She would be a tough opponent for Raducanu, who could face Jelena Ostapenko, ranked 10th in the world, in the third round.
All of those matches would be tough for Raducanu, but she hasn’t played any of the game’s big names since she lost to world No. 2 Aryna Sabalekna in the third round of the Indian Wells tournament.
All eyes will be on Simona Halep when she returns to the WTA Tour for the first time since her drug ban was shortened. Her first match, against Paulo Badosa of Spain, will be very interesting.
It would be amazing if Halep won that match because then she would play Aryna Sabalenka, who is ranked second in the world.
After beating Maria Sakkari in the final of Indian Wells on Sunday, world No. 1 Iga Swiatek will be eager to finish the “Sunshine Double,” which she did in 2022.
During the first round, Swiatek doesn’t have to play anyone. In her first match in Miami, she might play Camila Giorgi of Italy.
In the second round, No. 3 seed Coco Gauff will play either fellow American Ashlyn Krueger or a qualifier. In the third round, the defending US Open winner could face Marta Kostyuk, who made it to the semifinals at Indian Wells.
Ill health forced Elena Rybakina to drop out of the Indian Wells event, but she hopes to play again. In her first match, she will either play Caroline Dolehide or a qualifier.
The total amount of money that will be spent in Miami is $8,770,480.
Winner: $1,100,000/1,000 points
Winner: $585,000/650 points
Third place: $325,000/390 points
$185,000/215 points for the quarterfinalist
$101,000/120 points for the fourth round
The third round is worth $59,100 or 65 points.
Round 2: $34,500/35 points
Round 1: $23,250/10 points
