Day 3 of the WTA 1000 tournament in Doha will see more elite players join the fray, with three-time champion Iga Swiatek searching for a record fourth title as she takes on darkhorse Janice Tjen. Former champion, 41-year-old Vera Zvonareva, will look to continue her fairytale run as she takes on the big-hitting teenager Victoria Mboko. As always, we at LWOT will offer predictions for every match on the slate, but who will advance?

WTA Doha Day 3 Predictions
Elise Mertens vs Daria Kasatkina

Head–to–Head: Mertens 2 – 5 Kasatkina

Daria Kasatkina will be looking for her first consecutive wins since the US Open after she rallied to defeat Moyuka Uchijima in three sets in the opener. She can draw confidence from their head-to-head, which she dominates. However, Mertens is playing the better tennis at the moment and should see this one out.

Prediction: Mertens in 3

Victoria Mboko vs Vera Zvonareva

Head–to–Head:  First Meeting

Former champion Vera Zvonareva will be looking to advance past the second round for the first time since winning the tournament in 2011, when her opponent was just a four-year-old. The Russian veteran has rolled back the years in Doha with three solid wins, but this is as far as she goes against a confident Victoria Mboko, who will look to seize control of the match early on en route to her tenth win of the season.

Prediction: Mboko in 2

Elina Svitolina vs Dayana Yastremska

Head–to–Head: Svitolina 1 – 0 Yastremska

Dayana Yastremska showed steel when it mattered most, holding her nerve in a gripping final-set tie-break against Cristina Bucsa to book an all-Ukrainian showdown with Elina Svitolina for just their second meeting of the compatriots on tour.

Svitolina arrives in ominous form. The seventh seed has already lifted the Auckland title and surged to the Australian Open semi-finals, climbing back into the top ten for the first time since becoming a mother. A former world No. 3, she cruised past Yastremska 6-2, 6-0 at the 2019 US Open, and while this clash promises to be far tighter, momentum, pride, and red-hot 2026 form all point to the older Ukrainian as the one to beat.

Prediction: Svitolina in 2

Iga Swiatek vs Janice Tjen

Head–to–Head: First Meeting

Iga Świątek opens her Doha campaign chasing a historic fourth title, and history is firmly on her side. Standing in her way is world No. 46 Janice Tjen, who announced herself with a ruthless 6–0, 6–1 demolition of lucky loser Beatriz Haddad Maia.

It’s a maiden meeting with the six-time Grand Slam champion for the Indonesian, whose flair and variety have caught the eye, but matching Świątek’s weight of shot and control in these conditions may be a step too far.

Prediction: Swiatek in 2

Main Photo Credit: Andy Abeyta/The Desert Sun/USA TODAY NETWORK