(No. 4) Jessica Pegula def. (No. 7) Elina Svitolina 6-2, 6-4

Jessica Pegula’s string of deep tournament runs finally delivered on Saturday, as she defeated Elina Svitolina in straight sets in just 1 hour and 12 minutes to capture the Dubai Tennis Championships title. The win marked Pegula’s 10th career WTA singles championship and ended a stretch of six consecutive semifinal appearances without lifting a trophy.

The win was also Pegula’s fourth title at the WTA 1000 level, making her only the third American woman to win in Dubai, joining Lindsay Davenport and three-time champion Venus Williams. It was a breakthrough moment that underscored both her consistency and persistence at the top tier of the sport.

From the opening games, Pegula was in full control. After dropping the first two points of the match, she rattled off 10 straight points, breaking Svitolina twice to race out to a 3–0 lead. Although Svitolina briefly clawed back a break, Pegula immediately responded, reasserting her dominance with a forehand-driven attack to restore a comfortable advantage. She closed out the opening set in 34 minutes, mixing power with precision and holding serve at love to seal it.

Pegula never allowed momentum to shift in the second set. She matched Svitolina’s early resistance with steady serving, then broke for 3–2 using a combination of heavy forehands and sharp net play, a nod to her background as a former doubles World No. 1. Svitolina continued to battle, saving multiple break points late, but Pegula remained composed throughout. A final forehand winner down the line set up championship point, which she finished emphatically with an ace.

At 31 years old, Pegula joins an elite group as just the fourth player since 1990 to win multiple Tier I or WTA 1000 titles after turning 30, alongside Martina Navratilova, Mary Pierce, and Serena Williams. For Pegula, the Dubai title was a fitting payoff for years of consistency at the highest level.