Elina Svitolina overcame Coco Gauff in a three-set thriller to reach the Dubai final after eight years. The Ukrainian won 6-4, 6-7(13), 6-4 in three hours and three minutes, surviving four match points in the second-set tiebreak. She will face Jessica Pegula in the championship match.
Elina Svitolina secured a hard-fought victory over Coco Gauff in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships semifinal on Friday night, advancing to her third final in the event and her first since 2018. The match, which lasted three hours and three minutes, ended 6-4, 6-7(13), 6-4, marking Svitolina's first WTA 1000 final since Rome in 2018—a gap of seven years and 277 days, the longest in the format's history since 2009.
Gauff struck first with a break for a 3-1 lead in the opening set, but Svitolina broke back to level at 3-2. The set remained tight until 4-all, where a net cord allowed Svitolina to hit a forehand winner, followed by Gauff's forehand error, enabling the Ukrainian to serve out the set.
The second set featured multiple breaks, leading to the longest tiebreak on the WTA Tour in 2026: 28 points with seven lead changes. Gauff saved five set points and converted her seventh at 15-13 after strong net play, including a volley at 14-13.
In the decider, Gauff broke for 1-0, but Svitolina leveled at love for 1-1. Holds continued until a seven-deuce game at 4-all, where Gauff missed two break points, and her forehand error gave Svitolina a 5-4 edge. Svitolina broke again to win when Gauff's forehand hit the net.
Svitolina, who improves to 3-2 against Gauff, celebrated by writing 'Fight like Ukraine' on the camera lens. 'Speechless after that fight,' she said on court. 'I was really trying to put myself out there, and I was playing like there is no tomorrow.'
Looking ahead to Saturday's final against Pegula, whom she leads 3-5 in WTA matches, Svitolina noted recovery challenges: 'We'll do everything possible. Physios are here trying to help me speed up the recovery.'
Gauff, who committed 46 forehand unforced errors but hit 48 winners, remained positive. 'It’s tough to be on the losing end of a match like this, but there’s a lot of positives to take from it,' she said. 'Entering a tournament not in my best form and still making the semis means a lot.'
