–

As many seeds as went out early, it feels right that two of the top three seeds – No. 1 Iga Swiatek and No. 3 Elena Rybakina – are the last two standing in this Saturday final.

For a set – i.e. 90 minutes – it was a battle. Then, as Rybakina hit the wall, Swiatek only got stronger and won her third consecutive Doha tournament.

Similar on the doubles side, where only No. 5 Schuurs and Stefani made a run and were the heavy favorites in the final. Which they handled in straight sets.

While this final is happening, the final round of qualifying in Dubai went on, as back-to-back WTA 1000s with 56 draws is a pretty tough little nugget in the 2024 schedule.

ATP Tour – Saturday results

(Doha is 8 hours ahead of ET; Dubai is 9 hours ahead)

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Qatar Total Energies Open
Location: Doha, Qatar
Category: WTA Tour 1000
Surface: Outdoor Hard
Dates: Feb. 11 – 17, 2024
Prize money: $3,211,715
Draws: S56 / D28

Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024
Final results

Singles final

[1] Iga Swiatek (POL) def [3] Elena Rybakina (KAZ) 76 (8) 62

Doubles final

[5] Demi Schuurs (NED) / Luisa Stefani (BRA) def Caroline Dolehide / Desirae Krawczyk (USA) 64 62

**********************************

Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships
Location: Dubai, UAE
Category: WTA Tour 1000
Surface: Outdoor Hard
Dates: Feb. 18 – 24, 2024
Prize money: $3,211,715
Draws: S56 / D28

Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024
Final results
Qualifying, final round

(1st-round opponents in brackets)

[3] Clara Burel (FRA) def Eva Lys (GER) 62 61 (Sloane Stephens)
[4] Magdalena Frech (POL) def [13] Yulia Putintseva (KAZ) 63 36 64 ([14] Ekaterina Alexandrova)
Nao Hibino (JPN) def. [6] Lucia Bronzetti (USA) 36 63 64 (Magda Linette)
Storm Hunter (AUS) def. [10] Cristina Bucsa (ESP) 46 64 62 ([Q] Anna Kalinskaya)
[1] Anna Kalinskaya (RUS) def [16] Kamilla Rakhimova (RUS) 62 62 ([Q] Storm Hunter)
[14] Bernarda Pera (USA) def [5] Elisabetta Cocciaretto (ITA) 46 75 62 (Leylah Fernandez)
[11] Viktoriya Tomova (BUL) def [ALT] Timea Babos (HUN) 64 63 ([12] Liudmila Samsonova)
[8] Wang Xiyu (CHN) def Sara Errani (ITA) 63 62 ([9] Jelena Ostapenko)