WTA Dubai Preview

DUBAI NEWS & NOTES

*Siniakova-Townsend won the titles here in 2025, the first #1 seeds to do so since 2020 (Hsieh-Strycova). The final went 7-6, 6-4 in their favor over (3)Hsieh-Ostapenko 7-6(5), 6-4. There is no repeat on tap with no Townsend in the doubles draw and Sinikova partnering with Storm Hunter this week. They won the titles together in Dubai back in 2024, so it will be Siniakova going for a personal “three peat” this week. Hsieh-Ostapenko will seek to become the first duo to make back-to-back finals since Hsieh-Strycova won back-to-back titles in 2019-2020.

*The straight sets verdict in last year’s final marked the fourth time in the last five year’s that the final was settled in two sets. The last super tie break finish was in 2023. As far as overall super tie breaks in the 2025 run, there were nine matches that had STB endings out of 24 completed matches. Four of those came in round one with the most bountiful round being the quarterfinals where three of those four matches needed the STB to settle. The overall number was still down from 13 in 2024 and eleven in 2023. Keep an eye on the semifinals where three of the last four runs in Dubai have seen one of the semifinals go the distance.

*Unseeded pairs have been quite pesky in Dubai over the years. Last year, five of the eight quarterfinalists and two of the four semifinalists were not seeded. There has been at least one unseeded semifinalist in Dubai each year since 2018. Five of the last eight years have seen multiple unseeded pairs in the final four of this tournament. I will focus on what pairs could be in line to join those numbers in the UNSEEDED MENACES section below.

*So what does that mean for seeds this week? Keep an eye out for their openers. Last year, four seeds went one and done in Dubai and another seeded pair withdrew before their opener. Three seeds went one and done in 2024 with four more getting handed early exits in 2023. This is definitely a time of the season where you’re likely to see some early upsets. Round one on Sunday already produced one with (6)Muhammad-Routliffe falling to Cristian-Ruse.

*As for this year’s field, Errani-Paolini lead the field as the top seeds. The Italians are off to a slow start in 2026 at 3-2 with three matches going the distance. They are 1-2 in those instances. This will be their “debut” in Dubai after they withdraw before playing in round one in 2024. The hottest pairs coming in are (4)Danilina-Krunic and (3)Hsieh-Ostapenko. In case you live somewhere without Internet, Danilina-Krunic head to Dubai off a title run in Doha that elevated them to the #1 spot in the WTA Doubles race. They are 12-3 in what has been an excellent opening to the season. Hsieh-Ostapenko lost out to them in the Doha final, but have gone 10-2 overall with two finals in four tournaments played. And oh yeah, the two seeds? Just some pair that won the Australian Open! Mertens-Zhang play their first tournament since winning in Melbourne last month. This field is STACKED.

As I mentioned above, unseeded pairs have wiggled their way into the semifinals frequently in the last seven or eight years in Dubai. The pickings are slim in this year’s unseeded pool in my opinion, but here is a trio of pairs who maybe could have some success if things fall just right.

Siegemund-Zvonareva
It’s not 2023 when this pairing was elite, but they obviously have the kind of chemistry that could ignite them at any time to be a surprise contender. They split their first two matches together this year in Doha. It may not have been particularly inspiring, but they are in the quarter with Errani-Paolini who have yet to get it going. That could afford this pair to spring an upset or two and get into the quarterfinal mix at least. Likely needing to get through Hunter-Siniakova to get to a semifinal may be too big an ask.

Panova-Shnaider
This is draw-drven for me with these two having only played two matches together (1-1) with both of those in Doha last week. They are in the Hsieh-Ostapenko quarter, but land opposite of that pair. That means Muhammad-Routliffe are the seeds in their path to a quarterfinal. With that pair still seeking momentum this year, this could be an opportunity for Panova-Shnaider to push through this section. I think the talent is surely there for these two, it’s a matter of chemistry and reps deciding how far they might be able to go.

Cristian-Ruse
They’ve already broke out with a win in Dubai, knocking off the six seeds Muhammad-Routliffe. That may not be a clear signal of danger with the seeds really struggling so far in 2026, but this pair has experience and success in their past. Last week, they made the semifinals in Cluj-Napoca. And last year they narrowly lost to Wimbledon champions Kudermetova-Mertens on hard courts in Cincinnati in a super tie break (13-10). They don’t look like an easy out no matter the opponent.

Olmos-Pegula
This might be more of a dartboard shot, but this pair has the experience to compete with the Australian Open champs who will be coming into round two off a bye. Olmos-Pegula do have experience together albeit back in 2024. They already showed in round one on Sunday that they could be a factor as they took down Mihalikova-Nicholls in straight sets. Keep your eyes on these two.

ONE AND DONE WATCH

It’s been a tough go of it for seeds early over the last few years in Dubai. As I mentioned earlier, four seeds were done in their openers in 2025. And there have been at least three seeds bounced in their first match each of the last three runs. So which pairs could be the most prone to an early loss?

(1)Errani-Paolini
They have yet to really get on track in 2026 and there seemed to be a little frustration in Doha last week, so I have my eye on the Italians this week. For me, the upset potential here lies on Siegemund-Zvonareva beating Cocciaretto-Fernandez to get to round two. I think the two vets have a realistic shot, while the youngsters likely would have a tougher time.

(2)Mertens-Zhang
Yeah, I am that dummy who is putting the Australian Open champs on this list. It is the spot I think they could struggle, IF they struggle at all this week. They have not paired since January 31 and Zhang will be coming in after pairing with Bucsa back in Abu Dhabi earlier this month. Off the bye, they face either Olmos-Pegula or Mihalikova-Nicholls. You can’t dismiss either pair and remember it was just last week that Mihalikova-Nicholls took down Czech royalty in Krejcikova-Siniakova in Doha. This could be more interesting than people think.

(5)Dabrowski-Stefani
If you’re a follower, you know that I hopped on board the hype train for these two in Australia. Their chemistry is just so natural and the results have flowed positively in 2026 after not having paired since 2023. The five seeds are 7-2 and in off a semifinal showing in Doha. All seven of their wins are in straight sets. That said, keep an eye on Birrell-Joint who battle them in round one. They lost their lone match of 2026 6-4, 6-4 to Siniakova-Zhang in Adelaide, but both have been solid in 2026. Birrell gaining an Australian Open quarterfinal for her resume and Joint winning Abu Dhabi with Alexandrova.

DRAW PREVIEW

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TOP HALF

The first quarter houses the top seeds, Errani-Paolini. Sunday’s early start in Dubai already produced two pairs advancing to round two. (7)Hunter-Siniakova whipped Klepac-Piter 6-2, 6-3. I am excited to see this pairing back in action again. Remember their 2024 was cut short by Hunter’s achilles injury and that was the same year they won this tournament. They reunited last year in Wuhan and won those titles. There is little reason to believe they can’t win again here this week. The other completed match on Sunday saw Perez-Schuurs get a needed win 6-2, 6-0 over Xu-Yang. They’ve dropped their second match in both Abu Dhabi and Doha, so they’re still looking for consecutive wins for the first time since Australia. They get the 7th seeds in round two.

As for Errani-Paolini, they’re still waiting for their opening opponents to be determined. It’s either Siegemund-Zvonareva or Ciciarretto-Fernandez. I touched on it earlier, I really think Siegemund-Zvonareva can make trouble for the top seeds if they are the round two foes. As for the top seeds, they did make the semifinals in Doha last week, but it was a struggle the whole way. All three of their matches went to super tie breaks and it was Hsieh-Ostapenko who stopped them short of the final. Maybe it’s a good precursor that they found ways to win and things are coming together, but I do expect their opener could be tight. Even should they survive, the prospect of potentially playing Hunter-Siniakova just to get to a semifinal makes it hard to see the top seeds making a run this week.

Three of the four spots in round two are set in quarter two in Dubai after Sunday’s play. (3)Hsieh-Ostapenko are the highest seeds and they’re set to do battle with Chan-Tauson. That pair defeated Jurak-Kempen 7-5, 6-4 in round one. Hsieh-Ostapenko have been steady during the early season grind with a 10-2 mark and a pair of finals, winning in Brisbane and losing last week in Doha. This is also a team that was in the final here a year ago. The three seeds are obvious contenders, not to mention the lone seeds remaining in this quarter.

That is due to (6)Muhammad-Routliffe earning another early exit. They lost Sunday to Cristian-Ruse 6-4, 7-6(1). For Muhammad-Routliffe, their new partnership is off to a rocky start with a 3-6 record and three straight opening match defeats. Don’t sleep on Cristian-Ruse. They made the Cluj-Napoca semifinals last week and have a lot of experience pairing together. They await the winner between Panova-Shnaider and Khromacheva-Sutjiadi. Both those pairs have limited action together with Khromacheva-Sutjiadi 0-4 in their careers together. I mentioned Panova-Shnaider as potential sleepers along with Cristian Ruse, so I feel like either one of those could emerge from this part of the quarter to challenge Hsieh-Ostapenko.

TOP HALF FORECAST

There are some good story lines to follow with this half. The Siniakova three-peat quest in Dubai and Hsieh-Ostapenko looking to continue their blistering hot start to 2026. And you can also throw in whether or not Errani-Paolini can show their best this week and remind everyone just who they are and what they can do. Even though I have a couple of my Unseeded Menaces in this half, it really looks like this finals’ spot should go to a seed. I have a hard time looking past Hunter-Siniakova. They have been SO good together (26-4) and have made five finals in their seven career tournaments played as a pair. An interesting twist is that they have never beaten a Hsieh-led pair with Hsieh-Mertens beating them two times back in 2024. Is Hsieh the secret sauce?

SEMIFINAL PIX: (7)Hunter-Siniakova vs (3)Hsieh-Ostapenko

BOTTOM HALF

Both seeds in quarter three have yet to play; (4)Danilina-Krunic and (8)Bucsa/Melichar-Martinez. Let’s start with the red hot Danilina-Krunic who won the titles in Doha last week. This pair has won 12 of 15 matches in 2026 and has made a semifinal or final in each of four tournaments played. They have a bye as they wait for either Hozumi-Wu or wild card entry Bhosale-Pipeuch. Hozumi-Wu were flat in Doha last week, their first match since losing in the Australian Open quarterfinals against Hsieh-Ostapenko in three sets. MIhalokova-Nicholls cruised past them 6-3, 6-2. Outside of that Aussie surprise, this pair has struggled for wins (3-7). I think they get one here, but it’s hard to fathom them beating an in-form Danilina-Krunic right now in round two.

Up top in this quarter, Bucsa/Melichar-Martinez face off against Gracheva-Kenin, who pair up for the first time. Gracheva is the weak link here with the French woman 12-43 lifetime in doubles play. She has lost 20 straight doubles matched dating back to 2022, so taking down the seeds to open is going to be tough. Bucsa-MM come off a solid quarterfinal showing in Doha with a 4-3 record so far in limited action in 2026. I think the seeds get through with minimal trouble to set up a clash with Kichenok-Krawczyk who advanced out of round one 6-4, 6-4 over Kato-Stollar. I won’t completely rule out that pair from spoiling a seed versus seed quarterfinal, but that still seems the likelier outcome.

The final quarter sees the return of the Australian Open champs (2)Mertens-Zhang. This is their first match together since winning in Melbourne, about a two-week layoff. Zhang has played with other partners, but Mertens has not seen the doubles court since January 31. Is that enough to give Olmos-Pegula a shot to knock them out in round two? It could be. That pair looked fairly strong n round one, but it is certainly a step up to face Mertens-Zhang. I still see some upset potential.

The other half pits (5)Dabrowski-Stefani against wild cards Birrell-Joint to start. The seeds have been excellent as a new pairing for 2026 with semifinals in Melbourne and Doha. Danilina-Krunic have been their kryptonite both times they’ve lost. While Birrell-Joint have only paired a few times, they’re both excellent on the doubles court as they have shown with different partners in 2026. This one could be trickier than expected. The prospects of a Mertens-Zhang/Dabrowski-Stefani quarterfinal is MOUTH WATERING, but far from etched in stone. It would be difficult to go against Mertens-Zhang if it falls that way with the Aussie champs still not having lost a match in 2026.

BOTTOM HALF FORECAST

Much like the top half, I think it’s likely to come down to a seeded pair getting through to the final. Which one is up for debate. Nobody is hotter than Danilina-Krunic, but no one has beaten Mertens-Zhang yet in 2026. And then there is the consistency of Dabrowski-Stefani who seem like it’s just a matter of time before they get to their first final of the season. That makes for a fascinating half of tennis. I still think Olmos-Pegula are the one unseeded duo here that could really turn things upside down, but it is a harsh path.

SEMIFINAL PIX: (4)Danilina-Krunic vs (2)Mertens-Zhang

This is a massive week for these pairs with it being a WTA 1000 tournament. Big points are up for grabs and a chance for some of these teams to start making big moves in the rankings. There is just star-studded pair after star-studded pair here, so you can make a case for probably half a dozen duos as legitimate contenders to take the titles or maybe even more! I can’t look past the doubles queen, Siniakova and Storm Hunter as one of my choices. They have rarely lost and rarely lose out in being in a final of an event they enter.

As for the other choice from the bottom half? I slept a bit on Mertens-Zhang in Melbourne and I may be doing it again this week at my own peril. Still, going against Danilina-Krunic might be even more insane at the moment. They’ve beaten Dabrowski-Stefani head-to-head twice already, but they do own that loss from the Australian Open final to Mertens-Zhang. And they also have an earlier loss to a Zhang-inclusive pair when Siniakova-Zhang outlasted them in a super tie break (10-8) in the Adelaide semifinals. So, put my thang down, flip it and reverse it. I’m going Mertens-Zhang. Gotcha.

Hunter-Siniakova
Mertens-Zhang