The 2026 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships final sets the stage for a gripping duel between third seed Daniil Medvedev and Tallon Griekspoor. It marks Medvedev’s 42nd career final and second of the season after his Brisbane triumph, while Griekspoor steps into just his sixth championship match and first this year. Yet, even before the showdown begins, does Medvedev already hold the psychological edge?

After defeating World No. 18 Andrey Rublev in the Dubai semifinals, Dutch star Tallon Griekspoor opened up about his injury concerns from his physically demanding semifinal, revealing that things went wrong early.

“Obviously hurted myself at 5-All in the first set. Played an unbelievable game after to break somehow. Yeah, served extremely well in the second set to give myself a chance to stay in the match.”

Neither man allowed a break point in the early stages as both players started strong on serve, and the tension built with every hold.

In the ninth game, Rublev applied pressure. Griekspoor missed a winner and faced a 30-0 deficit, but responded with four consecutive aces to escape trouble.

Rublev relentlessly kept the pressure on, earning the match’s first break point in a pivotal 11th game. Griekspoor saved it but then double-faulted, while signaling to his trainer about discomfort.

Despite visible hamstring pain, Griekspoor fought hard, firing his tenth and eleventh aces to secure the game — his resilience keeping him alive in the set.

After a medical time-out, Griekspoor raised his level, creating and converting his first break opportunity to claim the opening set 7-5.

He received more treatment during the set break. Rublev attacked immediately in the second set and forced three break points at 40-0, but Griekspoor saved them all with powerful serving.

Rublev’s first serve was on fire – he impressively made all 24 of his attempts and maintained an 80% first-serve rate. Still, he could not find a break, and the set moved into a tense tiebreak.

Rublev struck first with a mini-break and earned set points, but a huge return shifted momentum, and Griekspoor surged through the final points to reach his first ATP Tour final since Mallorca 2025. 

Daniil Medvedev vs. Tallon Griekspoor Head-to-Head

Medvedev has been nothing short of dominant in Dubai, steamrolling his way to the final without dropping a single set across four matches.

He opened with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Juncheng Shang and defeated three-time Major champion Stan Wawrinka 6-2, 6-3. 

In the quarterfinals, he crushed Jenson Brooksby 6-2, 6-1 before delivering a 6-4, 6-2 masterclass against top seed Félix Auger-Aliassime in the semifinals.

Griekspoor’s path was equally impressive. He opened by beating Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen 6-3, 6-4 before defeating three seeded players in succession: second seed Alexander Bublik 6-3, 7-6 (4), sixth seed Jakub Menšík 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, and finally Rublev in three hard-fought sets.

The two finalists have met once before — at this same event last year, where Griekspoor emerged victorious 2-6, 7-6 (7), 7-5 in a three-set thriller, giving him the only head-to-head edge he carries into Sunday’s final.

Both players have protected their serve well throughout the week: Medvedev has been broken only twice in four matches, while Griekspoor has been broken just once.

But with the hamstring concern from his semifinal looming over his performance, Medvedev enters the championship match as the clear favorite.