WTA Dubai Championships Preview

Women's main draw play at the 2026 Dubai Championships will begin Sunday, Feb. 15 from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The Dubai Championships is the second of 10 WTA 1000 level events on the 2026 calendar. This outdoor hard-court tournament has a 56-player draw with byes for the top eight seeds and features most of the top players on the WTA Tour. Eight of the top 10 players in the WTA rankings are in the draw, but the top two will both be skipping this event, as neither Aryna Sabalenka nor Iga Swiatek will participate. Below are the top title contenders, dark horses and sleepers for the 2026 Dubai Championships.

Favorite to Win the 2026 Dubai Championships

Elena Rybakina: The third-ranked Rybakina is the No. 1 seed in Dubai after Sabalenka and Swiatek both announced that they won't play. Rybakina won the first Grand Slam of 2026 on the hard courts of the Australian Open, and she's off to an 11-2 start this season. Her losses came to Victoria Mboko and Karolina Muchova, who just faced off in the championship match of the Qatar Open, which was won by Muchova. Rybakina's big serve allows her to instantly get on the front foot in rallies and put her offensive skills on display, and she can consistently apply pressure in return games against opponents who get fewer free points on serve. Another matchup with Muchova is a possibility for Rybakina in the Round of 16 in Dubai, with No. 7 seed Elina Svitolina and No. 3 Coco Gauff representing her chalk opponents in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively.

In the Mix to Win the 2026 Dubai Championships

Amanda Anisimova: Anisimova is the No. 2 seed in this tournament and will be one of eight players with a first-round bye. Assuming she's over the illness that knocked her out of the Qatar Open just under a week ago, the big-hitting American should be among the top title contenders at the Dubai Championships. She'll face a tricky veteran in the second round, whether that's Barbora Krejcikova or Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. No. 13 seed Liudmila Samsonova is Anisimova's chalk opponent in the Round of 16, followed by fifth-seeded defending Dubai champion Mirra Andreeva or No. 11 Mboko in the quarterfinals. No. 4 seed Jessica Pegula, who beat Anisimova at the Australian Open, is a potential semifinal opponent.

Jessica Pegula: Pegula usually takes care of business in matches she should win, especially on hard courts, but comes up short against the best of the best on the WTA Tour. The fourth-seeded American has a golden opportunity here with none of Sabalenka, Swiatek or Rybakina in her half of the draw. Pegula sat out the Qatar Open following her semifinal result at the Australian Open, so she'll be well-rested for this tournament. Her draw is favorable in general, with No. 16 seed Iva Jovic as her first potential seeded opponent, then No. 8 Ekaterina Alexandrova or 12th-seeded 2025 Dubai runner-up Clara Tauson in the quarterfinals.

Mirra Andreeva: Andreeva defeated Swiatek and Rybakina last year in Dubai en route to the first of her two 2025 WTA 1000 titles, so the fifth-seeded Russian is certainly capable of defending her title in the depleted 2026 field. She has a solid 10-3 record to begin 2026, even though it feels like the 18-year-old phenom hasn't quite found her A-game yet this year. Perhaps returning to the site of her breakthrough last year will help Andreeva recapture that top level, though it will be interesting to see how she handles the pressure of the title defense. After losing to Mboko in a third-set tiebreak at the Qatar Open, Andreeva may not have to wait long for a chance at redemption, as they could square off in the Round of 16 here, with the winner projected to face Anisimova in the quarterfinals.

Sleepers to Win the 2026 Dubai Championships

Jasmine Paolini: Paolini put herself on the map as a contender by coming out of nowhere to win the Dubai Championships in 2024, and she has pretty much been a top-10 staple ever since. The sixth-seeded Italian has a nice opportunity to create another fond memory here with a deep run in 2026 thanks to a favorable draw. Potential Round of 16 opponent Linda Noskova is just 4-3 to begin the season, and the No. 10 seed hasn't beaten a top-25 player this year, while No. 3 seed Coco Gauff is just 5-5 in her last 10 matches at the Dubai Championships and is coming off a loss in her first match at the Qatar Open. Should Paolini emerge as the semifinalist from her section of the draw, she could match up with Rybakina (3-3 career head-to-head).

Karolina Muchova: Muchova was a sleeper pick heading into the Qatar Open and wound up winning the title while dropping only one set in the tournament. Her No. 15 seed at the Dubai Championships doesn't take that title into account, but even after those ranking points are added on, Muchova's ranking may still undersell her upside, as she has performed like a top-five contender at the biggest tournaments when her body allows her to over the past few years. Currently looking healthy, the oft-injured Muchova is capable of pushing for a second consecutive WTA 1000 title despite the quick turnaround after beating Mboko to win the Qatar Open on Saturday. The winner of a potential matchup between Rybakina and Muchova in the Dubai Round of 16 would likely be the favorite to at least reach the final here. Muchova beat Rybakina earlier this year to take a 2-1 lead in their head-to-head.

Qinwen Zheng: Zheng returned from an elbow injury to make her season debut at the Qatar Open and showed few signs of rust, winning a pair of matches before falling 7-5 in the third to Rybakina in the Round of 16. The 23-year-old Zheng was a top-10 player prior to the injury, and it likely won't take long for the 2024 Olympic gold medalist to climb back into the seeded range at tournaments like Dubai. For now, her No. 26 ranking leaves Zheng unseeded here, and she could match up with the 12th-seeded Tauson in the second round. Zheng is in Pegula's quarter in the wide-open bottom half of the draw. After serving up 34 aces in three matches at the Qatar Open, Zheng just needs to regain the timing on her groundstrokes to get back into the title conversation at WTA 1000 and Grand Slam events.

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