World No5 Jessica Pegula fought back from a set and break down in her semi-final tie with Amanda Anisimova to overcome the No2 seed 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 and reach the final of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships for the first time. The American will now meet Elina Svitolina on Saturday after the Ukrainian battled for more than three hours to upset World No4 Coco Gauff and move closer to a third Dubai title and first WTA 1000 title since 2018.
In the first of Friday’s two final-four match-ups, it was World No6 Anisimova who looked most likely to progress at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium. Hoping to make it fifth-time lucky against her compatriot Pegula – an opponent she is yet to beat on Tour – the objective looked well on course when she snatched an early break under the lights of Centre Court in game two, before breaking again in game six with some powerful hitting.
Having closed out the first set inside 28 minutes, the thousands of cheering fans could have been forgiven for assuming the 24-year-old was destined to become the first woman since Monica Seles in 2003 to reach the finals in both Doha and Dubai. This was after all the same player who reached back-to-back Grand Slam finals at Wimbledon and the US Open last year and shown such agility and perseverance in her last-eight tie in Dubai to eliminate Mirra Andreeva and leave the defending champion in tears.
Anisimova’s dominance continued early in the second set as the New Jersey native broke Pegula once again in the opening game and raced to a 6-1, 3-1 lead. Yet the match was the first all-American semi-final in Dubai since the Williams sisters Venus and Serena faced off in 2009 and Pegula channelled some of the famous siblings’ never-say-die determination to get a foothold back in the contest.
“I just kept telling myself to try and keep holding and find a couple different serves, get some momentum a little bit,” she said. “Luckily, I did just in the nick of time. Then I was able to put pressure on her serve right away and slowly turn the match around.”
Having drawn level in the second set, Pegula – who reached the semis here in 2023 – started to squeeze, serving with confidence to hold, break, consolidate, and level the tie. The tide had turned, she was now in the ascendancy, and no doubt memories of last month’s Australian Open quarterfinals knocked at Anisimova’s frontal lobe. In Melbourne, Pegula had triumphed in straights sets 6-2, 7-6 (1).
“I know that I can turn matches around,” said Pegula. “We’ve played a lot of times, but every time it’s really tough. It’s not like I’m killing her every single time. But I know what I can do to
kind of bother her game… I had to really make it a little physical there for a while. Then obviously at the end when I gained that momentum, it felt like there was a little bit of a lull in the energy where she was maybe a little tired.”
During the most strained rallies, it was Pegula who showed consistency to come out on top and when Anisimova’s forehand sailed long to seal her fate, the 31-year-old New Yorker dropped her racquet and threw her hands up in celebration. Svitolina awaits.
For the Ukrainian, recovery will be key following her epic match with Gauff that saw her opponent save five match points before the World No9 finally managed to seal the win 6-4, 6-7(13), 6-4. The two players had also faced each other at last month’s Australian Open, where Svitolina claimed the victory and the 31-year-old once again made her experience count when things got tight – despite being unable to finish the contest during an engrossing second-set tiebreak.
“It was extremely tough physically and mentally,” said Svitolina, who won back-to-back titles in Dubai in 2017 and 2018 and has since given birth to her daughter Skai. “Of course, it was important for me to bounce back after that second set. I had some chances to close the match but unfortunately, they didn’t go my way. I was trying to really put my head down and keep fighting; keep trying to find the opportunities. I’m very happy I could stay composed in a way and close the third set.”
Asked about returning to the final some eight years after she claimed her last Dubai title, she said: “For sure I had special moments on this court, winning for the first time here, entering top 10, coming the next year, winning it again. Of course, I have great memories and it’s going to be special. I’ll try to not think too much about it right now. For me, it’s just about recovering and trying to do my very best to be in a good shape.”
For a crestfallen Gauff, she was quick to look on the bright side: “Obviously, it’s tough to come out on the losing end of a match like this, but there’s a lot of positives to take from it. Elina played great and I thought I played great, so it came down to the wire. I’ll learn from it. Entering a tournament not in my best form and still making the semis means a lot and hopefully I can take this momentum into Indian Wells and Miami.”
Saturday’s doubles final will be a battle between fifth-seed pairing Gabriela Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani and the unseeded, experienced pair of Vera Zvonareva and Laura Siegemund. Canadian two-time Grand Slam doubles champion Dabrowski and Brazilian Olympic bronze medallist Stefani dug deep in their semi-final to see off No4 seeds Aleksandra Krunic and Anna Danilina. The pair battled back from a set down to win 4-6, 6-2, 10-6.
In the second semi-final, Zvonareva, a three-time Grand Slam doubles champion, rolled back the years with partner Siegemund, with whom she won the US Open in 2020. Together, the veteran duo – aged 41 and 37 respectively – beat Romanian pair Jaqueline Cristian and Elena-Gabriela Ruse in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6(6).
The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships is owned and organised by Dubai Duty Free and held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. It will be followed by the emirate’s annual ATP 500 men’s tournament from February 23 to 28.
There are multiple ticket categories still on sale for the 2026 Championships, with prices starting from Dh65. For full details, visit dubaidutyfreetennischampionships.com or ticketmaster.ae