Top five youngest men's singles champions at Miami Open

There have been three teenage winners at the Miami Open since its inception.

The sunny state of Florida has always attracted top players to its shores every March as one of the events in the ATP 1000 calendar. The tournament was first played in 1985, with American Tim Mayotte winning the first edition. The likes of Ivan Lendl, Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, Pete Sampras, and Andy Roddick ensured a steady flow of American champions until the mid-2000s when the tide turned in favour of the Europeans. 

The Miami Open is one of the two major tournaments played in North America along with the Indian Wells Open. The Sunshine State has produced many young champions, with three teenagers winning the Miami Open trophy in the past few years. 

Also Read: Top five players with most titles in men’s singles at Miami Open

Carlos Alcaraz (2022) – 18 years, 10 months, 26 days

Carlos Alcaraz gave Spanish fans plenty to cheer about when he capped a two-week dream run at the 2022 Miami Open to hold aloft the trophy. At 18, Alcaraz became the first Spanish and youngest player to win the tournament. 

Alcaraz won his first ATP 1000 title by defeating Norway’s Casper Ruud 7-5, 6-3 in less than two hours. Another personal milestone arrived when he lifted the Madrid Open trophy two days past his 19th birthday. It was to be his second ATP 1000 title in 2022.

Novak Djokovic (2007) – 19 years, 10 months, 9 days 

Novak Djokovic won the first of six Miami Open titles in 2007, two months short of turning 20. It was a dominating run from start to finish, with the Serb not dropping a set en route to the title. The title run concluded with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 win over Argentine qualifier Guillermo Canas.

Subsequent wins followed in 2011 and 2012 and 2014-2016 to equal Andre Agassi’s haul. The Serb has seven title-round appearances in Miami. Only Agassi, with eight finals, has more. On four of these occasions (2011, 2014–2016), Djokovic achieved the rare Sunshine Double by combining his Miami Open win with the Indian Wells Open trophy.

Andre Agassi (1990) – 19 years, 10 months, 26 days

Andre Agassi is the youngest American to post a victory at the Miami Open. He claimed the trophy at 19 years and 10 months for the first of his six titles in Florida. The American’s final win at the venue came in 2001, the same year he completed the Sunshine Double after bagging the Indian Wells Masters. 

Agassi returned to the top five in the ATP rankings after winning the 1990 Miami Open. The Nevadan secured the title with a 6-1, 6-4, 0-6, 6-2 win over Sweden’s Stefan Edberg. The American, with 20 straight wins, owns the record for consecutive matches won in Miami.  

Also Read: Miami Open: Full list of title winners

Jim Courier (1991) – 20 years, 7 months, 6 days.

Jim Courier was the first man and American in ATP history to complete the Sunshine Double in 1991. Courier attained the milestone with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over compatriot David Wheaton. The triumph followed the marathon five-set victory over Frenchman Guy Forget in California to complete the Indian Wells-Miami one-two for Courier.  

Courier crossed paths with Forget in the fourth round at Miami, but this time, he settled the match by handing the Frenchman a 7-6(3), 6-3 defeat in just 93 minutes. Three more Masters titles followed for Courier – Rome in 1992 and 1993 and Indian Wells in 1993. 

Pete Sampras (1993) – 21 years, 7 months, 8 days

Pete Sampras was the second American to complete the Sunshine Double when he won the Indian Wells and Miami Masters in 1994. A year before, in 1993, he won his maiden Miami Open title courtesy of a 6-3, 6-2 win over fellow American Malivai Washington. He defended his Miami Open title the following year with a win over Andre Agassi in the final. Sampras, however, fell short of winning his third consecutive title in Miami, losing to Agassi in 1995.

At 21 years and seven months, Sampras is the fifth-youngest man to secure victory at the Miami Open ATP 1000 event. Sampras also rose to World No. 1 immediately following his win in Florida. He went on to win another Miami Open title, his last, in 2000.

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