Jessica Pegula staged a comeback to defeat Amanda Anisimova 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships semifinals, improving her head-to-head record to 5-0. Elina Svitolina outlasted Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-7(13), 6-4 in a three-hour marathon to set up an all-experienced final against Pegula. Both matches featured resilience and key turning points on February 20, 2026.
In the first semifinal at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, No. 4 seed Jessica Pegula trailed No. 2 seed Amanda Anisimova 6-1, 3-1 before rallying to win 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 in 2 hours and 2 minutes. This victory marked Pegula's 21st career WTA final and her 10th at the 1000 level or above. She has now won all five encounters against Anisimova, including three in three sets, with previous wins at the 2020 Western & Southern Open, 2024 Charleston, 2024 Toronto, and January 2026 Australian Open.
Pegula described the match as a gradual fightback. "At the start of the third, it was 1-1," she said. "I just looked at my coach and I was like, 'I'm just happy I'm still even here right now.' She was playing some incredible tennis, and I just came out a little slow." Key moments included escaping a break at 6-1, 2-0 with Anisimova errors, holding from 0-40 at 3-1, and breaking at 3-2 before Anisimova responded. Pegula then won seven of eight games from 4-3 down in the second set to secure the win. "I was running a lot," Pegula added in her press conference. "I knew I had to use my legs... get my feet under and stay in the points."
In the second semifinal, No. 7 seed Elina Svitolina defeated Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-7(13), 6-4 after three hours. Svitolina saved four match points in the longest WTA tiebreak of 2026 (15-13) and broke in the final game of the third set. This advances her to her 24th WTA final, first at 1000 level since 2018 Rome, and first since motherhood. She now leads Gauff 3-2 head-to-head and holds the Dubai record with 24 match wins, surpassing Caroline Wozniacki and Venus Williams.
"Very special to see so many flags," Svitolina told Ukrainian fans. "I’m fighting all the time when I’m down... I try to keep in my mind the really difficult times that Ukraine is going through." Pegula leads Svitolina 5-3 overall (5-2 on outdoor hard), setting up a final on February 21, 2026. Svitolina seeks a third Dubai title, matching Justine Henin.
