For the second year in a row, the Czech player made a surprise appearance in the Miami Open final. And year after year, that player will be trying to pull off a major upset.
Jakub Mensik took down Novak Djokovic in the 2025 championship match. Twelve months later, Jiri Lehecka will take his shot against Jannik Sinner.
Sunday’s contest marks their fifth meeting, and it’s a head-to-head series completely dominated by Sinner. The Italian has won all of her last four matches and is 9-0 overall after destroying Lehecka 6-0, 6-1, 6-2 at the 2025 French Open. Only two of their nine sets were more competitive than 6-3.
What if anything will change this time? After all, Sinner is still on the full list at the moment. World No. 2 is one win away from completing the Sunshine Double, having previously won at Indian Wells. During his 11 match winning streak, Sinner never dropped a single set. In fact, he has won an unbelievable 32 consecutive sets in Masters 1000 events dating back to the Paris Masters this past fall.
Lehecka earned a spot in his first Masters 1000 final with victories over Moise Kouame, Ethan Quinn, Taylor Fritz, Martin Landaluce, and Arthur Fils. World No. 22 brings a ton of firepower to the table – especially on the front end – but has yet to face a defender of Sinner’s caliber. Fils was favored over Lehecka in the semis but came out on top following his impressive quarterfinal win over Tommy Paul. The reality is that the 24-year-old has faced opponents who may be tired, less than 100 percent physically, or inexperienced.
In the finals, Lehecka certainly won’t get help from the other side of the net. It’s been a good run for him, but it will probably end in a non-competitive loss.
Choose: Sinner in 2
