Victoria Mboko defeated Jelena Ostapenko, 6-3, 6-2, to reach the Qatar Open final.
The Canadian produced one of the finest performances of her career to reach her second WTA 1000 final.
Mboko’s win over Ostapenko was her quickest of the tournament so far (One hour and 14 minutes).
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Still, she’s spent over nine hours on court so far in Doha, having won her previous two matches in three sets.
With that in mind, Mboko provided a brief fitness update in her post-match interview.
Victoria Mboko insists she is feeling ‘pretty good’ ahead of the Qatar Open final
“I feel pretty good, it’s a part of the game,” she said.
“Sometimes you have really long matches, sometimes it’s shorter.
Victoria Mboko’s matches at the 2026 Qatar Open
| Round | Opponent | Score | Match length |
| SF | Jelena Ostapenko | 6-3, 6-2 | 1hr, 14 minutes |
| QF | Elena Rybakina | 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 | 2hr, 23 minutes |
| 3R | Mirra Andreeva | 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 | 2hr, 10 minutes |
| 2R | Vera Zvonareva | 6-4, 6-4 | 1hr, 37 minutes |
| 1R | Marie Bouzkova | 7-5, 6-2 | 1hr, 41 minutes |
| Total | – | – | 9hr, 5 minutes |
“But it’s important to rest up, take recovery into perspective, and just do everything I can to be ready for tomorrow.”
Mboko will need to rest up as much as possible before she takes on either Maria Sakkari or Karolina Muchova in the Qatar Open final.
She will soon turn her attention to rest and recovery, but took a moment to reflect on the match and thank the fans.
“I mean, it’s crazy. She was playing really great tennis from the start, so I felt like I had to step it up,” said Mboko.
“No, I’m happy to be here in the final, and I want to thank everyone who came here to support, there’s a lot of people, there’s a lot more in each round, so thank you, everyone, for coming.”
There had been some criticism of the poor attendance at the Qatar Open, but Mboko and Ostapenko’s semifinal match had no such issues.
And the fans were rewarded for turning up with a masterclass from one of the WTA Tour’s brightest prospects.
‘Fantastic serve’ sent Victoria Mboko into the Qatar Open final – Stephanie Dubois
On Sky Sports, Mboko’s fellow Canadian, Stephanie Dubois, shared her thoughts on the match.
“Impressive performance from Victoria Mboko, she rose to the challenge, once again, at a young age,” said Dubois.
“For me, she was so impressive, physically, mentally.
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“Playing smart tennis, offensive when she needed to be, and played a lot of extra balls on defence when [Jelena] Ostapenko was taking risks.
“But for me, also her serve was fantastic.
Victoria Mboko vs Jelena Ostapenko – Match stats
| Stats | Victoria Mboko | Jelena Ostapenko |
| Aces | 6 | 0 |
| Double faults | 4 | 1 |
| 1st Serve % | 63% | 65% |
| Win % on 1st Serve | 69% | 50% |
| Win % on 2nd Serve | 53% | 39% |
“First and second serve, it’s a great weapon of hers.
“What a fantastic match she played. She always shows up.
“She’s a warrior, and look at what it means to her.”
The win meant a lot to Mboko for more than one reason…
Victoria Mboko guarantees a top 10 debut with her semifinal win
When the next set of rankings are released on Monday, Mboko will be a top-10 player for the first time.
Live WTA Rankings
| Rank | Name | Country | Points |
| 1 | Aryna Sabalenka | Belarus | 10,990 |
| 2 | Iga Swiatek | Poland | 7,803 |
| 3 | Elena Rybakina | Kazakhstan | 7,523 |
| 4 | Coco Gauff | USA | 6,423 |
| 5 | Jessica Pegula | USA | 5,953 |
| 6 | Amanda Anisimova | USA | 5,690 |
| 7 | Mirra Andreeva | Russia | 4,786 |
| 8 | Jasmine Paolini | Italy | 4,157 |
| 9 | Elina Svitolina | Ukraine | 3,260 |
| 10 | Victoria Mboko | Canada | 3,246 |
She could yet jump up to ninth, depending on the result of the Qatar Open final.
Mboko will play Muchova or Sakkari in the Qatar Open final on Saturday, February 14.
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