KITZBÜHEL/STARNBERG, July 12, 2026
International women’s tennis officially returns to Kitzbühel after more than three decades as the draw for the inaugural Generali Open Ladies Kitzbühel was unveiled on Sunday at the summit of the Kitzbüheler Horn, nearly 2,000 meters above sea level. Five Austrian players will compete in the main draw of the new WTA 125 event, marking a historic milestone for women’s tennis in the famous Alpine resort.
Top Austrian hope Julia Grabher will open the tournament on Monday in the first match of the day, which will be broadcast live on ORF1. The tournament’s top seed faces Romania’s Elena Ruxandra Bertea for the first time in her career.
“I’ll watch some videos tonight, but I’m really excited to open this historic tournament tomorrow,” said Grabher.
Second seed Sinja Kraus begins her campaign on Tuesday against Sweden’s Caijsa Hennemann, a player she defeated just one week ago.
“We played each other recently and I won, so I’ll definitely go into the match with confidence,” Kraus said.
Freshly crowned Austrian national champion Ekaterina Perelygina will make her WTA debut against Morocco’s Yasmine Kabbaj, whom she defeated only a month ago.
“The chances are definitely there. I just need to make sure I don’t put too much pressure on myself,” Perelygina explained.
Arabella Koller faces experienced German Mona Barthel, while Leonie Rabl, who inherited the main-draw wildcard following the injury withdrawal of local favourite Anna Pircher, takes on Dutch veteran Arantxa Rus.
There was also good news for the host club, as local player Gina Feistl successfully came through qualifying and will face Julia Avdeeva in the main draw.
Top seed Veronika Erjavec of Slovenia opens against a qualifier, while third seed Tatjana Maria, who recently finished runner-up in Eastbourne, will also begin her campaign against a qualifier.
Austria will also be well represented in the doubles competition. Grabher and Kraus have teamed up for an all-Austrian pairing and will meet Michaela Bayerlova (Czech Republic) and Prarthana Thombare (India) in the opening round. Perelygina will partner Germany’s Anna-Lena Friedsam against Spain’s Marina Bassols Ribera and Greece’s Despina Papamichail.
Main-draw action runs from Monday through Friday, with play starting daily at 11:00 a.m. Admission to the Grandstand is free throughout the week. The semifinals will be played on Saturday, while the championship match is scheduled for Sunday, July 19, when the first champion of Kitzbühel’s new era of women’s tennis will be crowned.
