Dubai, UAE – February 16, 2025: World No1 Aryna Sabalenka is looking to conjure up some
more magic at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships this week after convincing even herself
that she might be able to do things others cannot.
The three-time Grand Slam winner and the top-seed at this week’s WTA 1000 event was one of
eight players to receive a first-round bye. Yet following Saturday’s draw she could face Ekaterina
Alexandrova in the second round for a second successive week. The in-form Alexandrova toppled
Sabalenka in Doha last week, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) and Sabalenka is already eyeing revenge.
Speaking to media inside the Jumeirah Creekside Hotel, which sits adjacent to the Dubai Duty
Free Tennis Stadium, 26-year-old Sabalenka said she could hardly believe her eyes when she saw
the draw. “No joke,” she said. “Right before I saw the draw, I was like: ‘Will be cool if I would go up
against Alexandrova one more time. Then the guys sent me the draw and I was like ‘Oh my God.
Am I a magician or something? How can I predict that? Can I see the future?”
While Alexandrova’s victory in Qatar improved her record against two-time Australian Open
champion Sabalenka to 4-4, for the two to meet again, World No26 Alexandrova will first need to
overcome Veronika Kudermetova, a qualifier this week but a defeated finalist in Dubai in 2022.
Sabalenka, for her part, has yet to progress past the quarterfinals in eight previous attempts.
“Whenever we play a tournament, we always want to win,” the Belarusian added. “I’m doing
everything I can to prepare myself as well as possible to be able to compete at the highest level
here. I really hope that one day I’ll be able to win this tournament.”
Meanwhile, World No3 Coco Gauff, who also fell in the second round in Doha after losing to Marta
Kostyuk 6-2 7-5, made the most of the early defeat by arriving early in Dubai, where she has spent
the week balancing tennis with tourism. As well as training hard at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis
Stadium, she also set aside some time to explore a little of the emirate with her mother Candi,
taking in the aquarium and other sights at Dubai Mall.
“I took the next day off, then came here and I’ve just been practicing – playing a lot of practice set
points,” said Gauff, the US Open 2023 champion, who also spent Valentine’s Day with her mum. “It
was super fun. We just went to the Mall and ate dinner. She’s here with me. She can’t spend it with
my dad, so I felt like I had to be the one taking her out because I’m taking her away from her
Valentine.”
Gauff, a semi-finalist in Dubai two years ago, will meet a fellow American in her opening match
after New Jersey-born Amanda Anisimova drew Georgia-born McCartney Kessler. Gauff, having
already summited Burj Khalifa, is looking to successfully come out on top of another Dubai
landmark this week as the city’s WTA tournament celebrates its milestone 25 th anniversary.
For all 56 players, however, the route to the top will require plenty perseverance with a field
featuring 36 of the top 40, 17 of the top 20, and nine of the top 10 – including World No2 Iga
Swiatek. The five-time Grand Slam winner reached the Dubai final in 2023 and the semi-final lastyear. Returning for a fifth consecutive year, she said she feels increasingly more comfortable in the
city and is looking forward to playing in front of a strong, multicultural crowd. She faces either
Victoria Azarenka or Anhelina Kalinina in the second round.
“Every year, I have a nicer experience because it feels more like home,” said Swiatek. “I also really
enjoy playing here in front of the fans – many people are coming from different countries to see the
tournament. Dubai is making women’s tennis more popular, so playing in this city and this
environment is something pretty exciting. I’m happy to be here.”
The 25th edition of the annual WTA 1000 event takes place one week before the men’s ATP event
at the same venue. The women’s competition will run between February 16 and 22, before the
33rd staging of the ATP Tour 500 tournament from February 24 to March 1. Dubai Duty Free
Tennis Championships is owned and organised by Dubai Duty Free and held under the patronage
of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of
the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
Tickets are available online at Ticketmaster and dubaidutyfreetennischampionships.com and
directly from the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium Box Office from 9am-9pm daily.
