Preview WTA Qatar Open 2026 Quarterfinals | Iga Swiatek aims to extend Doha record against Maria Sakkari, Mboko challenges Rybakina

The WTA 1000 Qatar Open enters the final rounds of the tournament, and this Thursday the quarterfinals will be played, with the favourites still in contention: three-time champion Iga Swiatek prepares for another meeting with Maria Sakkari, whom she has already defeated twice previously in Doha.

Meanwhile, Elena Rybakina continues the streak she has carried over since the Australian Open and comes off surviving a very tough battle against Zheng Qinwen. She will face an inspired Victoria Mboko, who came through the teenage showdown against Mirra Andreeva. Two-time Doha runner-up Jelena Ostapenko and two-time WTA 1000 finalist Karolina Muchova also join the field looking to secure their place in the semifinals.

Iga Swiatek (No. 2) arrives confidently into the quarterfinals of one of her favourite tournaments, with 17 wins in her last 18 matches at the event and three titles (2022–2024). The Pole became the first seed following the absence of Aryna Sabalenka and has so far lived up to her favourite status. She cruised past Tjen in her opener and, when Kasatkina posed a challenge in the round of 16, she found solutions by coming back from a set down to win 11 of the final 12 games played (5–7, 6–1, 6–1).

Awaiting her is a resurgent Maria Sakkari (No. 52), who reaches the quarterfinals of a WTA 1000 for the first time in almost two years and has already secured her return to the top 50 (No. 44 in the live rankings). The Greek has yet to drop a set and has looked dominant in her three consecutive victories, including a comfortable win over world No. 8 Jasmine Paolini—her 29th career win over a top-10 opponent.

Sakkari is one of the players who has historically troubled Swiatek, with a head-to-head of 4–3 in favour of the Pole. Notably, Sakkari handed Swiatek one of her few defeats at Roland Garros, where Swiatek owns a 40–3 record and four titles. Swiatek, however, has dominated their last four clashes, all in straight sets, two of them in Doha. It will be a chance for revenge for the Greek, while Swiatek looks to continue building confidence and at least match last year’s result.

Muchova (No. 19) is one of the freshest players heading into the quarterfinals, having spent just 38 minutes on court in her clash against Karolina Plískova (5–2, ret.), in addition to comfortable straight-sets wins over Jaqueline Cristian (6–2, 6–3) and Tereza Valentová (6–1, 6–4). The two-time WTA 1000 runner-up once again seeks an opportunity at this level, with the semifinals appearing close against an opponent she has dominated in previous meetings (3–0).

Muchova will face Russia’s Anna Kalinskaya (No. 28), who reaches the quarterfinals of a WTA 1000 for the fourth time in her career. The 27-year-old defeated players such as Emma Navarro (No. 18) and Elina Svitolina (No. 9), the latter marking her 12th career win over a top-10 opponent and her first of the season.

This is the most surprising quarterfinal matchup, considering that neither contender entered the tournament among the seeds. However, Jelena Ostapenko’s (No. 24) presence can hardly be called a surprise. Runner-up in Doha in 2016 and 2025, she is the player with the most wins in the tournament since 2021, with a total of 23 victories. This week she defeated Ekaterina Alexandrova and benefited from Emma Raducanu’s early exit to reach the quarterfinals. It took her less than an hour to defeat Camila Osorio (6–3, 6–1) in the round of 16.

Few would have expected Elisabetta Cocciaretto (No. 57) to be here. She entered the main draw at the last moment after losing in the second round of qualifying and capitalised on McCartney Kessler’s late withdrawal to enter as a lucky loser. She has already recorded three consecutive wins, including a victory over Coco Gauff on the way. The Italian also lifted the Hobart Open title a few weeks ago and arrives with strong confidence after securing her return to the top 40.

This marks Cocciaretto’s first appearance in the quarterfinals of a WTA 1000 tournament, and it comes against an opponent she has already beaten in their only previous meeting—albeit under very different conditions on the grass courts of the Birmingham Open in 2024.

The only quarterfinal featuring two seeded players and two of the competitors in the best form this season. It comes as no surprise to see Elena Rybakina (No. 3) maintaining her momentum after her Australian Open title, now reaching nine consecutive wins. She was thoroughly tested by a resurgent Zheng Qinwen, returning after months out due to injury, but Rybakina showed her class to stay composed in the decisive moments and secure a dramatic victory in what was arguably one of the best matches of the tournament so far (4–6, 6–2, 7–5).

Victoria Mboko (No. 13) also fought an impressive battle in the round of 16, saving a match point before defeating Mirra Andreeva (No. 5) to take revenge for their final at the Adelaide International one month earlier. The 19-year-old prevailed in a third-set tiebreak (6–3, 3–6, 7–6) to reach the quarterfinals of a WTA 1000 for the second time in her career—the first coming when she won the Canadian Open title a year ago.

For Mboko, this match also represents a chance to break into the top 10 if she advances to the semifinals, although she faces perhaps her toughest challenge yet: ending the winning streak of an in-form Rybakina. Despite Mboko’s short career, the pair have already faced each other three times, all on hard courts, with Rybakina leading 2–1. In 2025, the Kazakh claimed victories in DC Open (6–3, 7–5) and Tokyo (6–3, 7–6), while the Canadian recorded her only win in the Montreal semifinals, producing a major upset on her way to the final. Mboko will look to shock Rybakina and continue establishing herself—just months after her breakthrough—as one of the best players in the world.