This Week in Tennis: Muchova Captures Maiden WTA 1000 Title

Muchova Wins First 1000 Title

Karolina Muchova captured the first WTA 1000 title of her career on Saturday as she defeated Canadian Victoria Mboko 6-4, 7-5 in the Qatar Open final.

It is Muchova’s first title since 2019 and second overall.

"It's been a while since I won a tournament," Muchova said after the match. "So it's just nice to get that feeling again. To be reminded of that victory feeling here in Doha, it's incredible."

Muchova has now jumped eight spots to No. 11 in the WTA rankings, three shy of her career high (#8) that she reached in 2023.

On the other side, the 19-year-old Mboko moved into the top 10 for the first time in her career, rising to No. 10 after reaching her second final of the season.

Read also: Mboko Unable to Solve Muchova in Doha Final

Shelton Fights Back to Win Dallas Open

Ben Shelton fought off three championship points to rally and defeat fellow American Taylor Fritz 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 to win the Dallas Open on Sunday.

It’s the second 500-level trophy and fourth overall ATP Tour title in his career. Shelton is now 4–0 in ATP finals.

“I had to fight until the last minute. Fritz was playing very good tennis and I was struggling a lot with what he was throwing at me,” Shelton said. “I tried to be a competitor through and through, and I ended up coming out on top. I think it’s a testament to the work me and my team put in.”

In a battle of the top two American men in the world, Shelton (#9) improved his head-to-head record over Fritz (#8) to 2-1.

Read also: Shelton Ends Shapovalov’s Title Defence in Dallas

de Minaur beats Auger-Aliassime in Rotterdam

The third time is the charm for Alex de Minaur.

After losing to Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz in the Rotterdam final in 2024 and 2025, the Australian finally got over the hump in his third consecutive ABN AMRO Open final, defeating Félix Auger-Aliassime 6-3, 6-2 to claim the trophy.

“Third time lucky. I’m super stoked, super happy. It ended up being a great week here in Rotterdam. It’s a place where I always feel really good. I was just a step short in the previous years, so it feels great to finally be able to lift the title,” de Minaur said.

This was de Minaur’s first indoor ATP title and 11th title overall in his career. The win vaults him to No. 6 in the ATP rankings, while Auger-Aliassime falls to No. 7.

The Canadian was on an eight-match winning streak entering the Rotterdam final after capturing the title in Montpellier.

Read also: Auger-Aliassime Falls Short of Back-to-Back Titles with Rotterdam Final Loss

All Winners This Week:

WTA 1000 - Qatar

• Women’s Singles: Karolina Muchova * (1/2)* d. Victoria Mboko
  Women’s Doubles: Anna Danilini and Aleksandra Krunic d. Su Wei Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko

ATP 500 - Dallas

• Men’s Singles: Ben Shelton *(1/4) d. Taylor Fritz
  Men’s Doubles: Theo Arribage and Albano Olivetti d. Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos

ATP 500 - Rotterdam

• Men’s Singles: Alex de Minaur *(1/11) d. Felix Auger-Aliassime
  Men’s Doubles: Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori d. Ray Ho and Hendrik Jebens

ATP 250 - Buenos Aires

• Men’s Singles: Francisco Cerundolo *(1/4) d. Luciano Darderi
  Men’s Doubles: Orlando Luz and Rafael Matos d. Andrea Collarini and Nicolas Kicker

* 2026 Titles/Career Titles

Read also: 2026 Davis Cup Vancouver: Relive Canada's Qualifiers Tie with Brazil

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Feature Photo: Australian Open