Czech tennis star Karolina Muchova is through to her third WTA 1000 final, ousting Greece's Maria Sakkari 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 on Friday to advance to the 2026 Qatar Open final in Doha.
Sakkari won five straight games to open the match with a 6-3, 2-0 lead. Muchova, however, stayed aggressive, responding with five straight victories of her own to go up 5-2 in the second set. Sakkari then closed the gap to 5-4, but the world No. 19 held for the set.
From there, Muchova took control, dominating the third set 6-1 before closing it out with an ace.
Sealed her spot in the final with an ace! ✨
— wta (@WTA) February 13, 2026
Karolina Muchova advances to the final in Doha in a three set comeback against Sakkari!#QatarTotalEnergiesOpen pic.twitter.com/9SLJ0a8Ruq
The win marked Muchova's 11th of the year and kept her perfect record against Sakkari intact with five wins and zero losses. It also sets up her first-ever meeting with Canadian rising talent Victoria Mboko, after the 19-year-old beat Jelena Ostapenko 6-3, 6-2 to reach her second WTA 1000 final. The world No. 13 enters the final with 13 wins on the year, and will likely break into the WTA's Top 10 next week.
For Muchova, the Doha final marks another step in a strong 2026 season. The 29-year-old won her only WTA singles title at the 2019 Korea Open. A win Saturday would represent her first WTA 1000 title and push her to No. 11 in the WTA rankings.
Meanwhile, Sakkari heads to Dubai with a projected ranking of No. 33 — her best since March 2025.
How to watch Karolina Muchova at the 2026 Qatar Open
The 2026 Qatar Open final between Muchova and Mboko takes place Saturday, live on The Tennis Channel.
