WASHINGTON, July 8, 2026 (by Michael Dickens)
The Mubadala DC Open has announced that top-ranked Americans, World No. 4 Jessica Pegula and World No. 5 Ben Shelton, have accepted main draw wild cards into this year’s tournament, joining fellow wild cards Venus Williams, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Jack Draper and Kei Nishikori.
The 57th edition of the event will take place from July 25 to August 2 at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C. Entering a new era under the Mubadala DC Open name, the fifth-largest professional tennis tournament in the United States – and the only ATP/WTA combined 500-series event on the tour calendar – is on pace for a sixth consecutive sellout following record ticket demand and continued momentum as one of the premier events on the global tennis calendar.
The addition of Pegula and Shelton, made by tournament organizers Wednesday, means that this year’s Mubadala DC Open field now features:
- Seven Top-10 players
- Seventeen Top-20 players
- Four Grand Slam champions
- Five former DC Open champions
In addition to Pegula, this year’s field features five Wimbledon quarterfinalists: Felix Auger-Aliassime, Naomi Osaka, Marta Kostyuk, Jasmine Paolini and Taylor Fritz.
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“We are thrilled to welcome back the top ranked male and female American players, Ben and Jess, to our already exceptional player field,” said Mark Ein, Chairman of the Mubadala DC Open, in a statement. “They are some of the biggest stars in tennis and players that our fans in DC love to watch and support. Together with Venus, Stefanos, Jack and Kei, this year’s wild card field is incredible and we still have two more female singles wild cards as well as the ATP and WTA doubles and qualifying wild cards to announce. This summer’s event is shaping up to be the best player field have have ever had.”
Pegula, a 2024 US Open finalist and current World No. 4, owns 11 WTA singles titles, including titles this season at Dubai and Charleston. She also reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and Brisbane, the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, Indian Wells, Miami and Rome and the final in Berlin this year. Pegula, who will be making her seventh Mubadala DC Open appearance, holds an 11-5 career win-loss record in Washington, where she captured her first career WTA singles title in 2019.
“DC has always been one of my favorite stops on tour,” Pegula said in a statement. “Winning my first WTA title there makes it a place I’ll always look forward to coming back to. The fans are great, I love the city, and it’s a tournament where I’ve played some of my best tennis. I’m excited to be back there this month.”
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Meanwhile, World No. Shelton has won six career ATP singles titles, including three this season on three different surfaces: at Dallas (hard), Munich (clay) and Stuttgart (grass). He has also reached the quarterfinals in Auckland, the Australian Open, Houston and Halle this year. Shelton returns to Washington for his fourth Mubadala DC Open appearance, where he owns a 6-3 career win-loss record and has reached back-to-back semifinals in 2024-25.
“I always enjoy coming back to DC. The fans bring a ton of energy, and it’s a place where I’ve played some really good tennis the last couple of years. It’s an awesome atmosphere, especially playing under the lights, and I’m excited to get back out there and see if I can make another deep run,” Shelton said in a statement.
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Ticket information for the 2026 Mubadala DC Open is available at the tournament’s website.
