The draw for the 2025 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships is out.

Dubai: Draws | Scores | Schedule

After a week of surprises at the Qatar Total Energies Open, where just two Top 8 seeds progressed past the quarterfinals, the top players are looking to right the ship this week in Dubai.

World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and No. 2 Iga Swiatek top the draw, along with No. 3 Coco Gauff and No. 4 and defending champion Jasmine Paolini. The top eight seeds have first-round byes. 

Quick takeaways:

  • Doha rematches abound: Sabalenka could face Ekaterina Alexandrova yet again. Zheng Qinwen will look for revenge if she faces Ons Jabeur in Round 2.  
  • Belinda is back: The 2019 Dubai champion Belinda Bencic returns to the tournament for the first time since becoming a mom. She could face No.8 seed Emma Navarro in the second round. 
  • So we meet again: Swiatek, Rybakina and Ostapenko are in the same half of the draw for the second week in a row. Last week in Doha, Swiatek bested Rybakina in the quarterfinals before running into Ostapenko in the semifinals. 
  • Muchova's matchup: After skipping Doha, No. 17 Karolina Muchova is back and could face either Maria Sakkari or wild card Emma Raducanu in the second round. 

Dubai is the second WTA 1000 stop on the Hologic WTA Tour. Main-draw play begins on Sunday, Feb. 16. Click here for the full draw. 

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Here's a quarter-by-quarter breakdown:

First quarter

Top-seeded Sabalenka and Ekaterina Alexandrova could meet in the second round for the second straight week. An in-form Alexandrova toppled Sabalenka in Doha, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) en route to her third WTA 1000 semifinal. The win improved Alexandrova's record against Sabalenka to 4-4.

Can the Linz champion do it again? Alexandrova will open against Veronika Kudermetova in the first round, with the winner to face Sabalenka.

'Point of the year!' Sabalenka and Alexandrova play cat-and-mouse in Doha

Along with Sabalenka, No. 5 Jessica Pegula anchors the top quarter. In Doha, Pegula was one of three seeds to make it to the quarterfinals, along with Swiatek and Elena Rybakina. Like Sabalenka, she eventually bowed out to Alexandrova. This week, Pegula will face either Liudmila Samsonova or Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in her opener.

Last year's surprise runner-up Anna Kalinskaya is also in the top quarter and will face Elina Svitolina in the first round. The winner will play either Clara Tauson or Rebecca Sramkova.

Second quarter

No. 3 Coco Gauff and No. 8 Emma Navarro lead the second quarter of the draw and are hoping to rebound from their early Doha exits. They could face difficult opening matches.

Last week, Gauff lost in straight sets to Marta Kostyuk in the second round and could face Doha finalist Amanda Anisimova this week. It would be the first meeting between the two young Americans since Anisimova stunned Gauff at 2022 Wimbledon.

Bencic overcomes Krueger in Abu Dhabi, wins first title since 2023

Abu Dhabi champion Belinda Bencic is rested after having a week off, and she could face Navarro in the second round. A champion in Dubai in 2019, Bencic will have to navigate her way past Aoi Ito in the first round. 

Third quarter

World No. 4 and defending champion Jasmine Paolini leads the third quarter of the draw along with No. 6 seed Elena Rybakina. Paolini will open her title defense against a qualifier, while Rybakina could have to take on a red-hot Jelena Ostapenko.

Paolini posts comeback win over Kalinskaya to claim WTA 1000 Dubai title

Unseeded again this week, Ostapenko will open against a qualifier with the winner to face Rybakina. The Latvian enjoyed an outstanding week in Doha, where she notched two Top 5 wins over Paolini and Swiatek.

Fourth quarter

No. 2 Iga Swiatek and Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen lead the last quarter of the draw, with Mirra Andreeva and Beatriz Haddad Maia rounding out the seeds. 

Swiatek is a three-time champion in Doha but Dubai is one of the four WTA 1000 trophies she has yet to win. She has made the final four in her last two appearances, falling short to Barbora Krejcikova in the 2023 final and to Kalinskaya in last year's semifinal. Swiatek will open against either Victoria Azarenka or Anhelina Kalinina.

Hot shot: Swiatek hits the ground to blunt Noskova's power in Doha

No. 8 Zheng Qinwen is still seeking traction in the new season. The Chinese star is 1-2 in 2025 and could face her Doha vanquisher Ons Jabeur again. The Tunisian is in resurgent form after a run to the Doha quarterfinals and will play Peyton Stearns in the first round. The winner will take on Zheng.