Merida Open Akron 2026: Results, Schedule, Entry List, Draw and Predictions

Monday, 02 March 2026 at 11:26

The Merida Open Akron will take place between 23 February - 1 March at the Yucatan Country Club in Merida in Mexico and is a WTA 500 tournament on the calendar.

Emma Navarro is the defending champion and will return this year in a bid to try and retain her title. She is joined by Diana Shnaider, Ann Li, Marie Bouzkova, Jaqueline Cristian, Katie Boulter, Sloane Stephens among others.

It takes place on the same week as ATX Open Austin and is one of the final tournaments prior to Indian Wells and Miami.

Draw/Schedule/Results Merida Open Akron

Final

Date/Time	Player 1	Result	Player 2
	Cristina Bucșa	6-1, 4-6, 6-4	Magdalena Fręch

Semifinals

Date/Time	Player 1	Result	Player 2
01-03 02:10	Jasmine Paolini	5-7, 4-6	Cristina Bucșa
01-03 01:00	Magdalena Fręch	6-2, 6-7, 6-3	Shuai Zhang

Quarterfinals

Date/Time	Player 1	Result	Player 2
28-2 01:30	Jasmine Paolini	0-6, 6-3, 6-3	Katie Boulter
27-2 21:30	Zeynep Sönmez	3-6, 4-6	Cristina Bucșa
27-2 20:00	Magdalena Fręch	6-3, 4-6, 6-3	Marie Bouzková
28-2 00:00	Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva	1-6, 3-6	Shuai Zhang

Second Round

Player 1	Result	Player 2
Jasmine Paolini	6-0, 6-2	Priscilla Hon
Katie Boulter	6-3, 0-0, ret.	Camila Osorio
Ann Li	6-3, 6-7, 4-6	Zeynep Sönmez
Cristina Bucșa	7-6, 6-3	Marina Stakusic
Jéssica Bouzas Maneiro	0-6, 3-6	Magdalena Fręch
Emiliana Arango	6-2, 1-6, 0-2, ret.	Marie Bouzková
Magda Linette	7-5, 6-7, 5-7	Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva
Shuai Zhang	6-4, 6-4	Emma Navarro

First Round

Date/Time	Player 1	Result	Player 2
	Jasmine Paolini		BYE
	Priscilla Hon	6-2, 2-6, 6-4	Renata Zarazúa
24-2 1:00	Katie Boulter	6-4, 6-4	Beatriz Haddad Maia
24-2 21:00	Camila Osorio	6-4, 6-3	Janice Tjen
	Ann Li		BYE
	Cadence Brace	2-6, 0-6	Zeynep Sönmez
24-2 22:30	Cristina Bucșa	6-3, 6-2	Donna Vekić
23-2 21:00	Marina Stakusic	6-4, 6-3	Dayana Yastremska
24-2 22:30	Jéssica Bouzas Maneiro	6-3, 6-1	Heather Watson
	Magdalena Fręch	6-4, 7-6	Maria Timofeeva
24-2 2:30	Emiliana Arango	7-6, 6-2	Anastasia Potapova
	Marie Bouzková		BYE
24-2 21:00	Magda Linette	7-6, 6-3	Tatjana Maria
23-2 22:30	Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva	6-4, 1-6, 6-4	Yulia Putintseva
	Varvara Lepchenko	2-6, 1-6	Shuai Zhang
	Emma Navarro		BYE

Entry List Merida Open Akron

(as of TennisForum)

Pos	Player	Rank
1	EMMA NAVARRO (USA)	15
3	DIANA SHNAIDER	22
4	PAULA BADOSA (ESP)	26
5	JAQUELINE CRISTIAN (ROU)	35
6	ANN LI (USA)	38
7	JESSICA BOUZAS MANEIRO (ESP)	40
8	TATJANA MARIA (GER)	42
10	MARIE BOUZKOVA (CZE)	44
11	MAGDA LINETTE (POL)	50
12	EMILIANA ARANGO (COL)	51
13	CRISTINA BUCSA (ESP)	52
15	ANASTASIA POTAPOVA (AUT)	55
16	ELISABETTA COCCIARETTO (ITA)	56
17	BEATRIZ HADDAD MAIA(BRA)	61
18	Janice Tjen (IND)
19	Donna Vekic (CRO)
WC	Katie Boulter (GBR)
WC	Sloane Stephens (GBR)

Predictions Merida Open Akron

Samuel Gill, Head Editor for TennisUpToDate sees one of a few names sealing the title in Merida.

I see Emma Navarro as a potential champion in Merida, given her form last year, and often Mexican events are an outlier. For instance, Navarro didn't do too much last year but still won this, while Maria Sakkari in the past has been superb in these events.

Sakkari though has withdrawn from the tournament. I see Katie Boulter as being a forerunner after a great past few weeks.

While Diana Shnaider can also be seen as up there after some good form at the start of the season. But it is a pretty hard WTA 500 to guess as there aren't many huge names involved and those who were bigger have withdrawn.

*** Emma Navarro

** Katie Boulter

* Diana Shnaider

Cristhian Avila, Editor for TennisUpToDate.com sees Emma Navarro defending the title.

A draw without many of the big stars opens up a possibility for lower-ranked names to go deep. I place among the contenders defending champion Emma Navarro.

It could be a good chance for names like Paula Badosa and Daria Kasatkina, who, despite having dropped in the ranking,s still retain their status as important names on the Tour. Against less experienced players at the top level, they will have a slight advantage – especially if they manage to advance through a few rounds and find good physical condition during the week.

*** Emma Navarro

** Paula Badosa

• Diana Shnaider, Jaqueline Cristian

Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief

Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.

Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.

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