Can Djokovic outdo Agassi for Miami title record?

Both former World No. 1s have triumphed six times at ATP Masters 1000

Courtesy of ATPTour.com

Novak Djokovic has the chance to come back with a bang this year at the Miami Open presented by Itaú.

The 37-year-old Serbian, who has not competed at the hard-court ATP Masters 1000 event since 2019, can move clear of Andre Agassi by lifting his record seventh title there. Djokovic would also hit the 100 tour-level title mark if he can triumph in Miami for the first time since 2016.

Ahead of the 2025 edition of the Miami Open presented by Itau, ATPTour.com reflects on the stunning tournament legacies of Agassi and Djokovic.

There was no on-court crossover between Agassi and Djokovic, both former No. 1s in the PIF ATP Rankings, in Miami: The American made his final appearance there in 2005, the year before an 18-year-old Djokovic made his event debut. At the time, the legacy Agassi left behind in Florida appeared almost insurmountable.

After lifting the trophy at the 1990 Miami Open presented by Itau, the first edition following the event’s integration into the newly created Masters 1000 category, Agassi bounced back from a difficult few years in Florida by reaching three consecutive finals from 1994-96. He lost the first of those to his great rival Pete Sampras, but he avenged that defeat in the 1995 championship match before completing his hat-trick of titles at then-venue Crandon Park in 1996.

After another final appearance in 1998 (l. to Rios), Agassi enjoyed a new-millennium resurgence in Miami by becoming the first man to win three consecutive titles at the event in 2001-03 (he and Djokovic remain the only ATP Tour players to have achieved that feat).

Agassi was denied a final Miami appearance due to injury in 2006, the year that teenage debutant Djokovic defeated Paul-Henri Mathieu in the first round before falling to Guillermo Coria. Yet the American’s love for a tournament where he won six of his 17 Masters 1000 crowns and a record 61 main-draw matches could not be dented.

“I’ve always loved playing here,” reflected the then-34-year-old American, who retired later that year at the US Open, at a press conference to announce his withdrawal. “It’s a great place to be. A lot of memories, a lot of great matches, certainly one of the best arenas for me to be at my best.

It did not take Djokovic long to master the hot and humid Miami conditions after his 2006 second-round defeat to Coria. The Serbian returned a year later and promptly lifted his maiden Masters 1000 trophy, the only one he claimed as a teenager, by charging to the title without dropping a set. His statement 2007 run included a quarter-final win against Rafael Nadal, a 6-1, 6-0 semi-final triumph against Andy Murray (who will coach Djokovic in Miami this year) and a final victory against Guillermo Canas.

“It certainly feels great,” said Djokovic, when asked about becoming the then-youngest champion in tournament history (a record only broken by Carlos Alcaraz in 2022). “It means that your name is in the history of the sport. I am very proud of that. I know that I worked hard throughout all my career to reach this point, and I hope that this is just the beginning of a long career.”

Despite quickly going on to establish himself as one of the world’s best players, Djokovic fell to shock first-round exits at Crandon Park in 2008 and 2010, either side of a 2009 championship-match defeat to Murray. Yet those topsy-turvy years directly preceded a half-decade of dominance for the Serbian in Miami.

Djokovic won the title in five of six years from 2011 to 2016, with only a fourth-round loss to Tommy Haas in 2013 spoiling his Miami record across that period. In four of those five championship matches, he defeated a ‘Big Four’ rival (Rafael Nadal in 2011 and 2014, Murray in 2012 and 2015), while he took out four Top 20 players, including Dominic Thiem and finalist Kei Nishikori, to triumph in 2016.

With that most recent title run, which he capped with a 6-3, 6-3 victory against Nishikori, Djokovic not only drew level with Agassi for the most Miami men’s singles titles. He also secured a record fourth ‘Sunshine Double’ of winning in Indian Wells and Miami in the same year (2011, 2014-16). Roger Federer (2005-06, 2017) is the only other man to manage that feat multiple times, while Agassi (2001) is one of the other five that have completed it once.

“Every year that I come back to Miami I do go through those memories from back in 2007. It was the first Masters I won and opened a lot of doors for me, gave me a lot of self-belief,” reflected Djokovic after his 2016 win, his 28th Masters 1000 overall, which also moved him clear of Nadal for that record. “I started to realise that I’m able to win the big trophies and to beat the best players in the world. So of course, this is a particular place for me to come back to, now winning it six times.”

Djokovic has since improved his record Masters 1000 title tally to 40, but he arrives in Miami this year with plenty to think about ahead of his bid for number 41. Like Agassi, Djokovic won all six of his Miami titles at the tournament’s former home, Crandon Park in Key Biscayne. On his only previous appearance at the event’s current venue, Hard Rock Stadium, the Serbian fell in the 2019 fourth round to Roberto Bautista Agut.

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