Belinda Bencic at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on February 16, 2026.

Several of the tournament’s leading names safely booked their spots in the Round of 32 as the 26th edition of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships gathered pace on Monday (February 16). World No6 and second seed Amanda Anisimova progressed after being handed a late bye following the injury withdrawal of Barbora Krejcikova. On Centre Court, ninth seed Belinda Bencic, the 2019 Dubai champion, fought back from a set down to defeat Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 2-6, 6-1, 6-2. “I am just glad I was able to calm my head down a little bit and try and play a very simple game to improve throughout the match. I think I just settled into the match,” Bencic said. The Swiss star will next face 20-year-old Sara Bejlek. “I will try to figure out all of the information I have, but during the match I’ll just have to adjust and figure it out as we go,” she added. Last year’s runner-up Clara Tauson, seeded 12th, opened her campaign with a 7-6 (4), 6-2 win over 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin. After edging a tight first-set tiebreak, Tauson raised her intensity in the second set to close out the match. Fourteenth seed Emma Navarro and 16th seed Iva Jovic also advanced. The 18-year-old Jovic defeated Kamilla Rakhimova 6-1, 1-6, 6-1 and will meet Diana Shnaider next. With 16 of the world’s top 20 players competing, the WTA 1000 event runs until February 21, before the ATP 500 men’s tournament begins on February 23 at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium. PIA/CAM/Expat Media
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