Dubai Duty Free WTA 1000

[MargaretMcAleer]

Amanda with all the momentum from the 1st set breaks Jess in her first service game of the 2nd set and converts the break
Anisimova 2-0
The quality of hitting from the baseline from Amanda has just been wonderful to watch, this is the Anisimova that I love watching
Amanda saves 3 BPs, tough hold
Anisimova 3-1
Pegula gets the break back, she is redirecting down the line more and getting the first strike in against Anisimova now
3 all
On her 4th BP Anisimova breaks with a bh down the line winner
Anisimova 4-3
Pegula gets the break back again, Pegula has great court awareness, knows when her opponent is going to hit the ball
Back on serve 4 games all.
Pegula 5-4 and Anisimova will serve to stay in the 2nd set, maybe the fact that Jess has defeated her 4 times, might be playing on her mind, she has had enough breaks in the 2nd set to win the match?
Again Jess reading the patterns of play that Amanda is bringing on court, Amanda trying to attack the bhand wing of Jess
Jess with 1 SP
Jess wins the 2nd set 64
Going 3

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Pegula with the momentum now coming into the 3rd set and will serve to start the 3rd set
Both ladies had 3 set QFs matches yesterday and Pegula also played doubles, this will be a test of their fitness as well
Pegula can also neturalize the shots of her opponents and re-directs well
Anisimova bhand long and Jess breaks
Pegula 3-1 and converts and has turned this match around
'Pegula 4-1 final set
Amanda's foot work has become rather sloppy at present, maybe tiredness factor coming into play
Pegula 4-2
Pegula will now serve for the match at 5-3 and a place in tomorrow's final
Pegula has served well in the final set, with Amanda not having a BP opportunity
Pegula with 3 MPs
Pegula gets the better of Anisimova and extends her H2H 5-0 and wins 16 64 63 and is the first player into the final
Well done Jess!

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

I have missed most of the 2nd SF between Gauff v Svitolina
Just checking the scores Svitolina won the 1st set 64
It is 6 all in the 2nd set TB
Goodness me 11 all in the TB
Gauff won the 2nd set TB 76(13) Svitolina had many chances to win
Going 3
Match went down to the wire with Svitolina breaking Gauff to win 64 in the final set
Svitolina d Gauff 64 67(13) 64 to take her place tomorrow in the womens final, she play Pegula for the title

 

[kskate2]

Terrible match for Coco. I told you she is a mess. You cannot give 6-7 games worth of DF's and errors and expect to win at this level. I hope Jess mops the floor w/ Svito. She really has played well when needed this week

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Terrible match for Coco. I told you she is a mess. You cannot give 6-7 games worth of DF's and errors and expect to win at this level. I hope Jess mops the floor w/ Svito. She really has played well when needed this week

Actually Coco's DFs were worse in her previous match against Mertens 16 around 60 UFE
I dont know what the answer is with Coco and her serve, she hired Gavin McMillion who helped Sabalenka with her serve when she was hitting DFs, , I dont know if it is a pressure thing? actually I have run out of answers.

 

[britbox]

Semi Final Video Highlights from Dubai

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

WTA1000 Dubai
Ladies Doubles Final,
Saturday 21st February,
Starts at 4.30pm local time,

Dabrowski/Stefani (5) vs Siegemund/Zvonareva

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

WTA1000,
Ladies Singles Final
Starts at 7pm local time,

J. Pegula (4) vs E.Svitolina (7) Pegula leads their H2H 5-3, but Svitolina won their most recent one at IW in 2025.

What makes Pegula dangerous is she can consistently turn defense into offense, Pegula is tactically very astute, she has the ability to solve problems on court, when things dont go her way, as she turned around her SF match against Anisimova with tactical changes, after losing the 1st set 61, winning in 3 sets.

Svitolina has come into the final with her 3rd straight, 3 set win, even on tired legs, she's been able to find a way, win critical points and critical games when she needs them. In the longest TB of the year (so far) Svitolina was up a set and withing a point of closing it out, in her SF against Gauff, but 4MPs slipped away as she dropped the TB 15-13. To reset after that and win the 3rd set 64, she showed grit and composure.

Pegula comes into the final with a lot of momentum, after coming back to defeat Anisimova. I would not rule out Svitolina.

Good luck to both players!

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Congratulations to the No 5 seeds Dabrowski/Stefani who are the Doubles Champions defeating Siegemund/Zvonareva 61 63!

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Both Jess and Elina have arrived on court
Umpire is one of my favs Barry White aka Kader Nouni
Players warming up and Elina will serve first
Great start from Jess, breaks Elina and serves out a love service game to convert her break
Jess off to a flyer gets the double break in the 1st set
After getting off to a great start Jess has a poor service game and Elina gets on the board
Pegula 3-1
Jess with great returns and and as couple of world class fhands breaks Elina
Jess 4-1
Jess with a tough hold was pushed by Elina who had a couple of BPs
Jess 5-1
Elina really struggling on serve at present 45% 1st serve,that needs to come up if she wants to be competitive in set 2
Pegula will serve for the 1st set 5-2
A controlled 1st set by Jess 62 Winners 13 UFE 8, came out firing in the 1st set and didnt allow Elina to play her game at all
Elina W 4 UFE 11,

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

A couple of better service games from Elina and she needed them, serving first in the 2nd set
Great game from Jess using her fhand and bhand, then a great volley at the net to break Elina
Jess 3-2 and Jess converts her break
Jess 4-2
Jess 5-3 with a great fhand on the run
CH point for Jess, denied Elina with a good bhand winner
Elina holds.
Jess will serve for the match and the title at 5-4
Jess has 3 CH points her fhand has been 'on fire' in this match
Jess seals it with an Ace, her first title in Dubai
Pegula d Svitolina 62 64
Pegula a deserved winner in Dubai, a well controlled and flawless match for her maiden victory in Dubai!
Svitolina had a great week making the final, though wasnt able to play her game in this match, which had a lot to do with her opponent
This is Pegula's 4th career WTA1000 title and her 10th overall ( also a nice early birthday present for Jess, whose birthday is 24th February)

 

[kskate2]

Jess was mop-n-glo. Great match for her. Probably one of her most consistent performances, especially in a final.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Jess was mop-n-glo. Great match for her. Probably one of her most consistent performances, especially in a final.

Jess came out firing especially in that 1st set and didnt let Elina into the match at all, she was composed and flawless

 

[britbox]

FInal Highlights

Jess Pegula d. Elina Svitonlina 6/2 6/4

 

[britbox]

Jess with her new silver teapot.