The 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships, a WTA 1000 event, will feature top players including Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek. Main-draw action begins on February 15, with significant ranking points and increased prize money on offer. Reigning champion Mirra Andreeva returns as the seventh seed.
The Dubai Tennis Championships stands as one of the premier events on the WTA Tour, following closely after the Qatar Open as the second WTA 1000 tournament in the Middle East. Last year, in 2025, Mirra Andreeva claimed her first WTA 1000 title by defeating Clara Tauson in the final, marking a breakthrough for the young Russian player.
For the 2026 edition, the entry list highlights a strong field led by world number one Aryna Sabalenka, who tops the seeds. Iga Swiatek, ranked second, Elena Rybakina at third, and Amanda Anisimova at fourth follow closely. Coco Gauff holds the fifth seed, with Jessica Pegula sixth and Andreeva seventh. Jasmine Paolini rounds out the top eight.
Other seeded players include Elina Svitolina (ninth), Ekaterina Alexandrova (tenth), Belinda Bencic (eleventh), Linda Noskova (twelfth), Victoria Mboko (thirteenth), Clara Tauson (fourteenth), Naomi Osaka (fifteenth), and Madison Keys (sixteenth). Notable unseeded entrants are Emma Raducanu and Barbora Krejcikova, both Grand Slam champions, alongside players like Liudmila Samsonova, Emma Navarro, and Qinwen Zheng.
The tournament offers substantial rewards. The champion will earn 1,000 ranking points and $665,000 in prize money, an increase from the $597,000 awarded to Andreeva in 2025. The runner-up receives 650 points and $385,001, while semi-finalists get 390 points and $197,000 each. Quarter-finalists earn 215 points and $98,500, with earlier rounds providing 120 points and $49,250 for the third round, 65 points and $26,000 for the second, and 10 points and $18,300 for the first.
Key dates include the main draw announcement on February 13, with matches starting February 15. The schedule runs through quarter-finals on February 19, semi-finals on February 20, and the women's singles final on February 21 at 16:30 local time. Several top players, including Sabalenka, Pegula, Osaka, and Keys, are returning after absences or recent withdrawals from the Qatar Open.
