Week in Preview: Five tournaments, four continents from Dubai and Doha to Delray Beach, featuring Alcaraz, Berrettini and Murray

By Steve Tignor Feb 13, 2022

WTA Dubai, UAE

In third final of 2021, Muguruza tops surging Krejcikova to win Dubai

By David Kane Mar 13, 2021

WTA Dubai, UAE

Muguruza halts Mertens surge to reach Dubai final, Krejcikova next

By David Kane Mar 12, 2021

WTA Dubai, UAE

Behind Dubai's enthusiastic crowd, Halep easily dispatches Tsurenko

The Romanian credited the fans for getting behind her back in an interview with Tennis Channel global correspondent Prakash Amritraj.

ByEd McGrogan

Published Feb 20, 2019

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World No. 2 Simona Halep's push for back-to-back finals in Doha and Dubai became closer to reality with her 6-3, 7-5 win over Lesia Tsurenko.

There was less drama in this match than her opening-round win over Eugenie Bouchard, a 7-6 (4), 6-4 victory. Not just in the scoreline: Halep was irked by a fan's marriage proposal toward the Canadian during Tuesday's contest, according to Courtney Nyugen.

PSA: 5-4* in the tiebreak is not the time to yell “Genie when will you marry me? Simona said no.” The Halep Glare was choice.
— Courtney Nguyen (@FortyDeuceTwits) February 19, 2019

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With that out of the way, Halep continued her strong play at one of the WTA's most lucrative and competitive tournaments—eight of the tour's Top 9 are in the UAE this year—with a stronger test looming. The Romanian will face either Aryna Sabalenka, one of the game's top young players and the No. 8 seed, or Belinda Bencic, who is rediscovering the level of play that saw her burst onto the tennis scene years ago.

Will there be drama in that forthcoming match? As competitiveness goes, tennis fans can only hope so.

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ATP Rio De Janeiro

• Starting Monday 2/18, at 2:30 pm ET, catch live coverage of the Rio Open featuring Dominic Thiem, Fabio Fognini, and Diego Schwartzman.

WTA Dubai

• Watch Naomi Osaka, Petra Kvitova, Simona Halep and Karolina Pliskova live from the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships starting Saturday, 2/16 at 3:00 am ET

WTA Budapest

• Tennis Channel Plus features live coverage of the Hungarian Ladies Open beginning Monday, 2/18 8:00 am ET

ATP Delray Beach

• Watch Juan Martin del Potro, John Isner and Frances Tiafoe live on Tennis Channel Plus beginning Tuesday, 2/19 at 12:30 am ET.

ATP Marseille

• See Karen Khachanov, Borna Coric and Stefanos Tsitsipas live on Tennis Channel Plus beginning Monday 2/18, 8:30 am ET

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