DOHA, Qatar — The first final rematch of the 2026 season on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz is set. With Victoria Mboko’s 6-4, 6-4 second-round win over Vera Zvonareva at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open, the Canadian is slated for another battle with fellow teenage star Mirra Andreeva.
The two most recently met just under a month ago at the Adelaide International final, which saw Andreeva win her fourth career and first 500 title on the WTA Tour. Following Andreeva’s 7-6 (0), 6-1 second-round win over Magda Linette, they’ll encounter each other for the second time on Wednesday.
Here are the takeaways from Mboko’s second round win vs. Zvonareva:
How did Mboko defeat Zvonareva?
Zvonareva put up a valiant effort against Mboko, who is 22 years younger than her opponent. In the first set, Mboko’s power and ability to dictate Zvonareva’s movement shined, especially on the slower courts found in Doha.
“I just wanted to treat it like every other match,” Mboko said to press on Zvonareva. “I didn’t want to put age into perspective when playing her because I did not feel like I was playing a 41 year old. “I think it was really great tennis from her, and we’ll definitely be seeing a lot of a lot of her, and her ranking does not reflect the way she plays at all.”
Mboko’s serve, which she notched six aces, often set up easy winners or unforced errors, though her power did lead to some shots that went too long or wide. In the first set, six of the games went to deuce, and Mboko took advantage of four of them to help win the first set.
After each notched a break within the first four games of the second set, both players held serve until the final game. Mboko notched the match-clinching break to fend off Zvonareva, who came off her first main draw, tour-level singles win in over two years.
“I know Vera, she is a veteran,” Mboko said. “She’s playing really great tennis so I think she really pushed me to hit some really great shots, but I’m glad to have pulled it throughout the end of the day, and to advance the next round.”
Andreeva bests Mboko in battle of the teens to capture fourth career title
What happened in their first meeting?
Despite falling behind 3-0 in the first set, Andreeva won 12 of the final 13 games to capture the crown in South Australia in just 64 minutes. She broke Mboko five times in the match, and played excellent on her serve winning 75% and 67% on both her first and second-service points, respectively. The win moved Andreeva to her current World No. 7 rank.
Mboko was not 100% throughout that match vs. Andreeva, she admitted in her on-court interview — she took a medical timeout midway through the second set. The Canadian said though she’s not looking too much into the previous result, given the change of scenery and circumstances.
“Honestly, it doesn’t really matter that much for me, because whether how long (ago) I played them, it’s a different court. We’re in a different country. Everyone’s feeling different on each day, so I just like to go into it as if it’s a new match and not pay too much attention how the result was last time, whether you win or lose.”
Previewing the Mboko, Andreeva Adelaide International final rematch
Both came into Doha after reaching the Round of 16 at the Australian Open as Mboko fell to finalist Aryna Sabalenka and Andreeva lost to eventual semifinalist Elina Svitolina. The Qatar TotalEnergies Open is their first tournament since the Grand Slam.
It also happens to be Mboko’s first time playing in Doha — this time last year she was playing in a W75 in Rome, Georgia. With Mboko’s runs in Adelaide and Melbourne, she’s now No. 13 in the PIF WTA Rankings, making Wednesday’s match vs. Andreeva a top 15 matchup.
“She’s a really great competitor,” Mboko said. “She has a really different game, and she’s really going to push me to my limits, but I just want to rest up tonight and just see for tomorrow.”
