Jack Draper and Mirra Andreeva looking to complete Sunshine Double – but Gigi Salmon tipping Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz in Miami | Tennis News

In her latest column, Gigi Salmon salutes Indian Wells champions Jack Draper and Mirra Andreeva, gives her predictions for Miami and reveals who won a team table-tennis tournament…

A ripple of applause started in the lower lobby of the hotel we were staying in, which grew and grew until the house band that was in the process of setting up for the evening started playing ‘We Are the Champions’.

Jack Draper, Indian Wells champion, had quietly made his way out of the lift to join us at the table, where his team – James, Justin, Shane and brother Ben – were with Tim Henman, Laura Robson and I.

The fans in Indian Wells know their tennis and were quick to spot him. It wasn’t long before Jack was happily signing autographs and having his photo taken while his team digested and enjoyed the success as they planned the trip the next morning to Miami.

This time a year ago Jack was No 43 in the world. He woke up on Monday morning as world No 7 having won his first Masters 1000 title in just his third tournament of the year after he started the season coming off an injury he picked up in pre-season.

As Jack told us straight after the match “to be in this position right now is beyond words”.

How Jack played throughout Indian Wells made those people who weren’t doing it already, sit up and take notice. Every aspect of his game was causing his opponent trouble: serve, forehand, backhand, movement.

The list of players he beat was impressive: Joao Fonseca, Jenson Brooksby, world No 4 Taylor Fritz, fellow leftie Ben Shelton and two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz

Then in the final he swept aside Holger Rune for the loss of just four games. Patrick McEnroe described it as a “coming out party in the desert”.

People will say we’re getting carried away, it’s still early, it’s just one Masters title, but I say let’s get carried away! Jack has worked hard for this and will continue to put the time and effort in. He has a great team around him and has shown on one of the biggest stages in tennis that he can beat the best and back it up.

Not many players will want to face Draper

Miami is next and there could well be a let-down, don’t be surprised if there is, but on the other hand the way he is feeling and playing, there won’t be too many players in the draw who will want to face him.

As the sixth seed he has a bye through to the second round where he will face the winner of Roberto Bautista Agut and Jakub Mensik. He is in the top quarter of the draw which is headed up by top seed Alexander Zverev.

In all honesty it’s not a bad looking draw but a lot will depend on how he pulls up mentally and physically from winning in Indian Wells.

Staying with the Brits and joining Jack directly into the main draw is Cam Norrie, who faces Bu Yunchaokete of China in the first round with the winner to face Alex de Minaur in round two. Jacob Fearnley and Billy Harris are in the final round of qualifying.

On the women’s side we have Katie Boulter and Emma Raducanu as direct entrants, with both due to play on Wednesday. Katie has a tough opener against the American Peyton Stearns, while Emma will face Japanese wild card Sayaka Ishii with the winner getting eighth seed Emma Navarro.

There was disappointment for the British women in qualifying with Sonay Kartal losing out to the American Taylor Townsend 7-5 in the third set, while Harriet Dart fell to Australian Kimberly Birrell in straight sets.

‘Sponge’ Andreeva form player on WTA Tour

The Miami Open is another joint and mandatory 1000 event and the second part of the ‘Sunshine Double’, a back-to-back double that Draper and Mirra Andreeva are trying to achieve and one regarded as the toughest in tennis.

There can be up to eight hours of travel for players between Palm Springs and Miami, during which they cross three time zones and then there’s the contrast between the desert climate in southern California and south Florida’s at-times brutal heat and humidity. They will also find that the courts are smoother and play faster.

That’s a lot for anyone to take in and adapt to but you feel that 17-year-old Andreeva, who has just won back-to-back WTA 1000 titles in Dubai and Indian Wells, will be ok as she is a sponge, soaks up the information, makes the adjustments and is the form player on tour this year for the WTA.

Andreeva has confidence and belief in bucket loads and I like the fact that she thanks herself when she gets big wins – “last but not least I’d like to thank myself for fighting till the end and always believing in me”.

The sky really is the limit for Andreeva, who finds herself at a career-high No 8 in the rankings. With a bye to round two, the first seed she could face is Doha 1000 winner Amanda Anisimova.

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Swiatek hits back at critics over her behaviour

It’s worth, if you have time, taking a look at a recent social media post from Iga Swiatek, who by her own very high standards has had a frustrating start to the season with no title from four tournaments played – although most people would be delighted with a return of three semi-finals and a quarter-final!

In the post Swiatek says “it’s time I share my perspective to stop the speculation and baseless theories”, due to recent talk that she has seen about her on-court behaviour and emotions.

It’s a strongly-worded, passionate piece where she addresses her recent ban for a positive drug test, the affect that had on her ranking with the missed tournaments and how from being called a robot on court people are now saying she is ‘immature and hysterical’ for showing emotion.

Swiatek could open up in Miami against former top-10 player Caroline Garcia, with Boulter in her quarter of the draw.

Danielle Collins is defending the women’s title after doing a U-turn on retirement but it’s been a tough start to the year for the American and there will be a new men’s champion with Jannik Sinner serving his suspension, although the Italian remains comfortable at the top of the rankings with a 2,775 cushion to second-placed Zverev.

Who will win in Miami?

Unfortunately there was no time to do the ‘Bump and Grind Trail’ in Indian Wells but there was a hotly-contested table tennis tournament on the final night.

My input was minimal and not helped as I kept laughing as it was being taken very seriously and went on long into the night with a range of answers the next day as to who won.

But apparently it was the camera department who triumphed over the sound and production department. Saying that, it was the camera guys who told me that!

In terms of predictions, I got off to a predictable 0/2 start in Indian Wells and while not very original I’m going to roll those names over to Miami.

Alcaraz was stunned and hurt by his loss to Draper in Indian Wells saying, “I think I usually learn with the losses I have. In 2022 I lost here in the semi-finals and then won Miami. I will try to do the same this year”. I will take him at his word.

And for Aryna Sabalenka, the world No 1 and a two-time quarter-finalist in south Florida, the fire is burning and the hunger is there. I think that even though she could face Coco Gauff or last year’s finalist Elena Rybakina along the way that she will come through!

I’m flying home for a few days back on the school run before it’s off to Miami at the end of the week where I’m looking forward to working alongside Tim, Martina Navratilova and Marion Bartoli.

You can keep an eye on the action with Sky Sports Tennis – our coverage kicks off at 3pm on Tuesday.

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