5 players who narrowly missed out on the Sunshine Double ft. Serena Williams, Elena Rybakina

Serena Williams and Elena Rybakina are among the players who narrowly missed out on the Sunshine Double.

The term "Sunshine Double" means winning the Indian Wells and Miami titles in the same year. Both competitions are among the most prestigious ones on the tennis calendar and are in the top tier of tournaments -- ATP Masters 1000 and WTA 1000 series, just below the Grand Slams.

So far, only 11 players (seven men and four women) have managed to win the Sunshine Double. These include some of the greatest ever to play the game, like Roger Federer, Steffi Graf, Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, and Novak Djokovic.

However, there have been some legendary tennis players who were unable to win the Sunshine Double. These greats came very close to attaining the feat, but missed out on the achievement by the barest of margins.

On that note, let’s take a look at 5 players who narrowly missed out on the achievement:

#1 Stefan Edberg (1990)

Stefan Edberg had a stellar tennis career throughout which he won six Grand Slam singles titles, among other accolades.

Edberg was at his best during the late 1980s and early 1990s. 1990 was a memorable year for the Swede as he won his second Wimbledon crown by beating Boris Becker in a thrilling final.

That year, he also triumphed at the Indian Wells Masters (then known as the Newsweek Champions Cup) and when he reached the Miami Open (then called the Lipton International Players’ Championships) final, it seemed like he would become the first tennis player to win the Sunshine Double. However, the Swede lost 6–1, 6–4, 0–6, 6–2 to a 19-year-old Andre Agassi, whom he beat in the Indian Wells final.

#2 Serena Williams (1999)

The 1999 season was a breakthrough one for Serena Williams. That year, she won her first Grand Slam title at the US Open, beating then-reigning champion Martina Hingis in the final.

Earlier that year, Williams also won the tournament in Indian Wells (then known as the Evert Cup) by stunning Steffi Graf 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 in the title clash. She then headed towards Key Biscayne, Florida in hopes of capturing the Sunshine Double.

Seeded 16th in the tournament, Williams beat Alicia Molik, Magui Serna, Monica Seles, Amanda Coetzer, and Martina Hingis to reach the final. Here, she faced her sister Venus Williams and lost 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.

This was the closest Serena Williams ever came to winning the Sunshine Double.

#3 Lindsay Davenport (2000)

After triumphing at the 2000 Australian Open, Lindsay Davenport seemed confident about her season heading into the Sunshine Double. Three years ago in 1997, Davenport had already lifted her first title in Indian Wells.

After being denied success for a couple of years, the American took the tournament by storm and beat Martina Hingis 4–6, 6–4, 6–0 in the final to win her second title.

However, Hingis exacted revenge in the Miami Open (then known as the Ericsson Open). The Swiss took down Davenport 6–3, 6–2 in the final at Key Biscayne in straight sets to capture her second title in Florida.

#4 Maria Sharapova (2006, 2013)

Maria Sharapova twice missed out very narrowly on the Double

Maria Sharapova has won almost everything in her singles tennis career, but she failed to capture the "Sunshine Double" crown on not one but two separate occasions.

In 2006, Sharapova defeated compatriot Elena Dementieva in the final at Indian Wells. The triumph made her a possible candidate to win the Sunshine Double. However, that did not happen, as her fellow countrywoman, Svetlana Kuznetsova, denied her 6-4, 6-3 in the final.

Seven years later, in 2013, Sharapova came close once again to capturing the Double. Once again, she won in Indian Wells but lost in Miami, with her arch-rival Serena Williams beating her 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 in the latter’s final.

#5 Elena Rybakina

Elena Rybakina is the most recent case of a player narrowly missing out on the Sunshine Double. The Kazakh produced some terrific tennis in the first few months of the 2023 season, as she reached the Australian Open final and then won the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells by beating Aryna Sabalenka 7-6(11), 6-4 in the final.

Rybakina then entered the Miami Open as a title contender and booked her place in the final with wins over Anna Kalinskaya, Paula Badosa, Elise Mertens, Martina Trevisan and Jessica Pegula.

Standing between the Kazakh and the elusive achievement was Petra Kvitova, and the former was widely expected to win. However, Kvitova denied her the achievement by winning 7-6(14), 6-2 to win the Miami Open.