Several prominent players, including Naomi Osaka and Jessica Pegula, have withdrawn from the upcoming 2026 Qatar TotalEnergies Open due to injuries and recovery needs following the Australian Open. The tournament, the first WTA 1000 event of the year, begins on February 8 in Doha. Despite the absences, stars like Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek remain in the draw.
The 2026 Qatar TotalEnergies Open, set for February 8-14 at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha, Qatar, on outdoor hard courts, has seen a growing list of withdrawals just days before its start. Five top-25 players are confirmed out: Naomi Osaka (No. 14), Jessica Pegula (No. 6), Madison Keys (No. 15), Iva Jovic (No. 20), and Marta Kostyuk (No. 23).
Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, cited a recurring abdominal injury that forced her withdrawal from the Australian Open before her third-round match against Maddison Inglis. "I've had to make the difficult decision to withdraw to address something my body needs attention for after my last match," Osaka said. "I was so excited to keep going, and this run meant the most to me, so having to stop here breaks my heart, but I can't risk doing any further damage." She added that post-pregnancy changes have made her body require more caution, noting, "It’s an injury I’ve had a couple of times before, and I thought I could push through it... but I warmed up, and it got a lot worse."
Pegula, who reached the Australian Open semifinals before losing to Elena Rybakina, is taking an extended break after a demanding run that included wins over Keys and Amanda Anisimova. Keys, the 2025 Australian Open champion, exited in the fourth round to Pegula, with no specific reason given for her Doha absence. Jovic, an 18-year-old who surged to No. 20 after a quarterfinal run in Melbourne, and Kostyuk, sidelined by a torn ankle ligament from her first-round loss to Elsa Jacquemot, complete the list of notable pullouts.
Replacements include Wang Xinyu and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova for Osaka and Kostyuk. The field still features top seeds: Sabalenka (No. 1), Swiatek (No. 2), Rybakina (No. 3, Australian Open winner), and defending champion Anisimova (No. 4). The event offers $4,088,211 in prize money, with the winner earning $665,000 and 1,000 ranking points.
These withdrawals highlight the physical toll of the early-season schedule, even for elite players, as the WTA Tour moves into its Middle East swing.
