WASHINGTON, June 26, 2025 (by Michael Dickens)

Last July, the Mubadala Citi DC Open, the only ATP/WTA combined 500-series event on the pro tennis calendar, went head-to-head with the Paris Olympic Games. Fast forward 12 months, and what has been a summer fixture in the nation’s capital city for more than half a century will have the week all to itself this year.

The DC Open, which kicks off the North American hard-court circuit and includes upcoming stops in Toronto (ATP), Montreal (WTA) and Cincinnati (ATP/WTA combined 1000-series event) leading up to the US Open, revealed its preliminary draw on Thursday. It includes seven Top 10 players across both men’s and women’s tours and 16 of the Top 20. Also, eight of the ATP’s top 14 players and six of the WTA’s top 13 women’s players in the world. The star-studded field also includes five Grand Slam champions, six former DC Open champions and 16 Americans – including the top nine American men.

Qualifying for the DC Open begins on July 19 and the main draw runs from July 21-27.

Without a doubt, there’s plenty of star power coming to Rock Creek Park this summer to whet the appetite of all tennis fans.

Our strongest player field ever

Seven Top 10 players, five Grand Slam champions & the top nine US men are all coming to DC this summer!#MubadalaCitiDCOpen

— Mubadala Citi DC Open (@mubadalacitidc) June 26, 2025

The fifth-largest pro tournament in the United States has attracted plenty of American and international talent. Among the men entered are: World No. 5 Taylor Fritz, No. 7 Lorenzo Musetti, No. 9 Daniil Medvedev, No. 10 Ben Shelton and No. 11 Alex de Minaur. Also, No. 12 Frances Tiafoe, No. 13 Tommy Paul, No. 14 Andrey Rublev, last year’s champion Sebastian Korda, 2015 champion Kei Nishikori and two-time DC Open champion Nick Kyrgios. Others who are expected to compete include: Gaël Monfils, Flavio Cobolli and Jakub Mensik. The contingent of American men also includes: Brandon Nakashima, Alex Michelsen, Jenson Brooksby and Marcos Giron.

On the women’s side, the entries include: World No. 3 Jessica Pegula, No. 10 Emma Navarro, No. 11 Elena Rybakina, No. 13 Amanda Anisimova, No. 38 Emma Raducanu, four-time major champion Naomi Osaka and defending champion Paula Badosa, ranked ninth. Also, No. 12 Diana Shnaider, No. 18 Ekaterina Alexandrova and former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin. Other Americans include: Ashlyn Krueger, McCartney Kessler and Peyton Stearns.

With a line-up like this year’s, it’s no surprise why the Mubadala Citi DC Open is regarded as a favorite of fans as welll as an important stepping stone toward preparing for next month’s US Open for players.

DC Open ATP players entry list

DC Open WTA players entry list

During a recent phone interview with Tennis TourTalk, Mark Ein, Chairman of the Mubadala Citi DC Open, said he’s “thrilled” by the depth of this year’s men’s and women’s fields coming to Washington next month. “I’m totally thrilled. It might be our best player field ever.

“It’s unbelievable the combination of the top players with the biggest, best rankings and other players who are just fan favorites and who have had success here. It’s so deep that you just know that from literally the first ball on Monday until the last ball on Sunday, you’re going to see the best players in the world playing great matches.”

Fans can expect an unforgettable week of pro tennis and tickets for this year’s DC Open have been selling briskly. Ein said he expects all sessions of the 2025 tournament will be sold out.

Star power: Off the charts

Three US Open champions & two former World No. 1’s return to DC as @DaniilMedwed, @naomiosaka & @EmmaRaducanu add their names to this year’s event!#MubadalaCitiDCOpen pic.twitter.com/DrTb2DdGxB

— Mubadala Citi DC Open (@mubadalacitidc) June 18, 2025

The hard-court tournament, now in its 56th year, will take place at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in northwest Washington, about four miles straight north up 16th St. NW from the White House. What began as a vision by the late Hall of Famer Arthur Ashe of playing a professional tennis tournament in a fully-accessible public park has been carried on by Ein, a Washington-based venture capitalist and limited partner of the Washington Commanders of the NFL, who became chairman of the DC Open in 2019.

The Mubadala Citi DC Open has continued to build and expand the annual event, with the goal of positively impacting the Washington, D.C. Community and creating one of the best tennis events in the world. It benefits the Washington Tennis & Education Foundation.

Back at the scene of the climb @AnisimovaAmanda has jumped from No. 176 to No. 13 in the WTA Rankings since appearing in DC last year & returns next month!#MubadalaCitiDCOpen pic.twitter.com/IcsnbVTfHR

— Mubadala Citi DC Open (@mubadalacitidc) June 21, 2025

“We work really hard at providing an awesome experience for players,” Ein said. “When they come, they have a good time and feel well taken care of. I think it all starts from that.

“You’ll see so many of the players who play here every year. I think they come back because they just love the event, they love the city and they appreciate how well taken care of they’ll be. So, that’s the biggest part. If you take good care of them, they’ll want to come back and they’ll tell other [players] that’s it’s a great experience.”

While Ein realizes “the first priority of the players is to win tennis matches,” he and his staff do make sure that the city is accessible to them, “whether it’s going to restaurants or seeing the [historical] sites. We create those opportunities for them.”

Ben Shelton (photo: MDE Tennis)

Although this year’s draw does not include either of the Top-2 players from the ATP Tour (Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz) or the WTA Tour (Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff), all who will begin their US Open preparations the following week in Canada, Ein said he’s proud of the players he’s brought to Washington – both this year and in past years during his stewardship, which has included former World No. 1 and 22-time major champion Rafael Nadal as well as Sinner, who won the 2021 DC Open, and Sabalenka before they ascended to the top of the world rankings.

“We’ve been really pleased about how often a top player, if their schedule allows, will come to Washington, D.C. I think we’ll see that happen from time to time,” he said.

Add to the DC Open mix a vibrant Market Square, which will feature award-winning DC restauranteurs delivering unparalleled food and beverage offerings; daily tennis talks and more. Plus, fans will have plenty of opportunities to interact with their favorite players, whether it be to grab an autograph, take a selfie or watch them on the practice courts.

Ein said he looks forward to the Mubadala Citi DC Open having the week to itself on the ATP/WTA calendar of events. “It works really well for us. Earlier in the summer, the weather is a bit better in D.C.,” he said.

“A lot of players like being here at this time as well.”

Emma Raducanu (photo: MDE Tennis)

Former US Open champion Raducanu, for one, is looking forward to coming back to play in the DC Open for the third time.

“I love playing in DC, and I especially love this tournament,” Raducanu said in a statement. “I’m so happy to be back and to compete again in front of the stadium’s unforgettable fans in this incredible city.”

As the tournament continues to grow, Ein said it’s important to be able to expand and renovate the Rock Creek Tennis Center so that it can remain where it’s been a fixture for more than half a century – and, just as important, to carry on Ashe’s legacy.

“This is an historic tournament that’s in a really special place. I really want to do everything to try to keep it where it is,” Ein said. “I think our location is part of what makes the tournament so special. We would like to make sure that there’s a proper investment in the facilities that we can continue to provide a first-class experience.”