The Mubadala DC Open released its first wave of player commitments earlier this month, and the headline is simple: this is shaping up to be one of the deepest fields D.C. has hosted in years. Defending men's champion Alex de Minaur is back to defend his title, defending women's champion Leylah Fernandez returns as well, and the rest of the early list reads like a tour stop that outkicked its coverage.
Start with the men's side. Taylor Fritz, the World No. 9 and 2024 US Open finalist, headlines a group that includes Maryland native Frances Tiafoe, former World No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas, 2025 Indian Wells champion Jack Draper, and Tommy Paul. De Minaur arrives as the man to beat after a 2025 final that's worth remembering on its own: he saved three championship points and erased a 4-1 third-set deficit to beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina for the title. He's not just defending a trophy — he's defending one of the more dramatic finishes this tournament has produced.
The women's draw might be the bigger story locally. Venus Williams is back on a wild card, her third appearance at this event and her second since beginning a comeback in Washington last year, where she became the second-oldest woman to win a WTA Tour-level singles match in the Open Era. She'll share a draw with Marta Kostyuk, Victoria Mboko, Emma Raducanu, and defending champion Fernandez, who beat a stacked field last summer — including a second-round upset over then-No. 1 seed Jessica Pegula — to win her first title above the WTA 250 level since 2023.
For Tiafoe, this is close to a home game. "The DMV is home, and there's nothing like competing in front of family, friends and fans who have been watching me play since I was a kid," he said when his commitment was announced. That's the pitch this tournament has been making for nearly six decades, dating back to Arthur Ashe's insistence that it be played in a public park, accessible to everyone — and with this field, it's an easy one to believe again.
The full 2026 entry list lands July 1. The tournament runs July 25 through August 2 at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center. Baltimore Sports Feed will be on the ground for it.