Elena Rybakina came from a set down to defeat Zheng Qinwen 4-6, 6-2, 7-5, securing her spot in the Doha quarterfinals. Anna Kalinskaya followed with a straight-sets victory over Elina Svitolina, 6-4, 6-3, to advance as well. Both winners extended their strong starts to the 2026 season at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open.
In the round of 16 at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open in Doha, Elena Rybakina faced a tough challenge from Zheng Qinwen. The match lasted 2 hours and 27 minutes, with Zheng taking the first set 6-4 after a dominant serving display, winning all 13 points on her first serve and breaking Rybakina for a 3-2 lead. Rybakina, the World No. 3 and Australian Open champion, regrouped in the second set, winning 6-2 by generating seven break points and winning seven of 10 points on her second serve.
The decider saw Rybakina build a 5-2 lead, but Zheng mounted a late rally, breaking back to level at 5-5 with her eighth ace. Rybakina held for 6-5 and then broke Zheng at 40-0, winning five straight points to claim the 7-5 victory on her second match point. This improved Rybakina's record to 11-1 in 2026 and 3-1 against Zheng in WTA Tour level meetings. She has now won nine straight matches, including 16 of her last 17 since last year's WTA Finals.
"Qinwen, she started better than me and I started a bit slower, and maybe played passive in a few moments," Rybakina said in her post-match press conference. "But I’m happy that in the end it went my way."
Zheng, returning to action, had advanced through three-set wins over Sofia Kenin and Alycia Parks. "I think the problem is during a match I have some up-and-down focus and suddenly I lose concentration for a long time," she said. "I hope (by) playing more matches this will get better."
Later, Anna Kalinskaya defeated Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-3 in 1 hour and 18 minutes, starting after 11 p.m. local time. Kalinskaya landed 70% of her first serves, winning 68% of those points, and broke Svitolina four times. Her forehand winner sealed the match, her 14th career Top 10 win and first over Svitolina.
"Thank you," Kalinskaya said in her on-court interview. "I was worried there were not going to be a lot of people, and I'm surprised. Thank you, guys, for coming and staying."
Rybakina will face No. 10 seed Victoria Mboko, who beat Mirra Andreeva in three sets, in the quarterfinals. Rybakina leads their head-to-head 2-1. Kalinskaya meets Karolina Muchova, who leads their series 3-0.