Big names in the draw of the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington this week include Ben Shelton, Taylor Fritz, Alex De Minaur and Frances Tiafoe as the world’s best get geared up for the US Open in just under a month’s time.
After FIFA suggested that the next World Cup may well have even more teams in it for the 2030 edition, this tennis tournament has gone the opposite way, with the number of players in the men’s draw reduced from 48 last year to 32 for the 2026 version.
It is also the only tournament that combines ATP 500 and WTA 500 events in the same week.
Here’s the lowdown on previous winners, this year’s favourites and who looks the best bet to go all the way.
Back Ben Shelton to win the 2026 Mubadala Citi DC Open
There’s plenty to like about the chances of wildcard Ben Shelton winning here at odds of 6.5.
Shelton was surprisingly knocked out of the first round at Wimbledon after having a match point in his favour but made the most of that disappointment by getting some valuable practice done in the Florida heat, which should prepare him well for this event.
He has a good record here with semi-final appearances in the last two editions, has the right game for these courts and is arguably in the weaker half of the draw. He'll need to avoid De Minaur, Jack Draper and, more importantly, Taylor Fritz till the final.
Add the fact he has family here and should enjoy plenty of support from the locals, and you can see why he should go well this week.
Why It Matters
While some players are still trying to get the grass stains off their all-white tennis outfits from Wimbledon, others are already thinking about the US Open, which will take place between August 23 and September 13 in New York.
This Mubadala Citi DC Open (or ATP Washington DC, if you prefer) tournament should prepare the players for the challenges of New York in a few weeks’ time, with hot temperatures expected and similar-paced outdoor hard courts to what they’ll find at Flushing Meadows.
Apart from being good practice for the last Grand Slam of the season, it also has plenty of ranking points on offer and almost $2.5 million in total prize money. So, there’s plenty to play for here.
And there have been some big-name winners in the past.
Alex Zverev, who recently won his first Grand Slam in Paris, won it in 2017 and 2018, while one-time Wimbledon finalist and the bad boy of tennis, Nick Kyrgios, was victorious in both 2019 and 2022.
The 20121 winer should be a familiar name to you, too! Jannik Sinner won it in 2021 aged just 20 and at the beginning of his career, while last year’s winner was Alex de Minaur, the 26-year-old Australian currently ranked 5 in the world.
Who Are the Favourites?
De Minaur is back this year to try to defend his title and is the fourth-favourite at odds of 7.0. With great court speed and even greater consistency from the back of the court, to go with the fact he’s been here and done it, he’ll take some beating.
He's the number 1 seed, by the way, but he’s got his work cut out at the first time of asking. He drew Greek wildcard Stefanos Tsitsipas in the first round, and odds of 1.8 to Tsitsipas’ 2.05 show you just how tight this match is expected to be. Tsitsipas is anything but consistent, but the flipside of that is that on his day, he can beat anyone. This is very much the glamour tie of the opening round.
If de Minaur is going to go all the way, he’ll also have to get the better of American third seed Taylor Fritz (the favourite at 6.0), who is in his half of the draw. Fritz, a huge server, should like conditions here and on fast courts; expect him to fire plenty of winners.
On the opposite side of the draw and at odds of 6.5, you can back Ben Shelton, another dangerous American, and also a big server with a game well-suited to these conditions. He faces fellow American Martin Damm first up, with De Minaur 1.38 to win.
England’s Jack Draper, given a wildcard after missing Wimbledon through injury, is 9.0, while Frances Tiafoe (13.0) and Arthur Fils (6.5) are others in contention to pick up the winner’s cheque.
