Muchova tops Sakkari in three, advances to Doha final vs. Mboko
Czech Karolina Muchova advanced to the final of the Qatar TotalEnergies Open with a three-set victory over Greece’s Maria Sakkari in Doha on Saturday.
The win put Muchova into her third WTA 1000 final as she chases her first title at this level.
Muchova had never lost to Sakkari in four previous meetings on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz, but that streak looked in danger when Sakkari won five straight games to take a 6-3, 2-0 lead. Muchova responded by continuing her aggressive style and reeled off five consecutive games of her own to go ahead 5-2 in the second set.
Although Sakkari closed the gap to 5-4, Muchova held firm to take the set 6-4 before dominating the third 6-1.
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
"I tried to play a little more aggressive, I would say," Muchova said when asked if she made any tactical changes to her game in the second set. "I tried to change it up more. I wanted to go more for the returns, go for more lines. I think that it paid off because then we didn't play such long rallies, which I think she's striving at, and I was able to get some faster points on my side."
It was the second semifinal of the season for the 29-year-old and her 11th win of the year — second only to 19-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko, who earned her 13th win earlier Saturday by defeating Jelena Ostapenko 6-3, 6-2 to reach her second WTA 1000 final.
Muchova, whose only WTA Tour singles title came in Seoul in 2019, will face Mboko for the first time on Saturday. The Canadian is guaranteed to break into the top 10 next week.
"It's going to be the first time," she added. "I watch her here and she's playing incredible. I know her since last year, probably all of us, she has this boom. I think she's an incredible, strong athlete. So it's for sure going to be a very tough battle."
Muchova, who has been ranked as high as No. 8, is projected to climb to No. 13 by reaching the final, with a win in the final projected to take her to No. 11. Sakkari, a former world No. 3, will head into Dubai with a projected ranking of No. 33 - her highest since March 2025.