Antonia Ruzic defeated Anastasia Zakharova 6–1, 6–7, 6–1 in the first round of the Dubai WTA Masters 1000 on hard court, confirming her pre-match favourite status despite a competitive second set. Ruzic controlled the opening and closing sets with commanding margins, though Zakharova mounted resistance in the middle set, forcing a tie-break that the Russian ultimately secured. The Serbian's ability to reassert dominance in the decider after the momentum swing suggests strong mental composure in a Masters 1000 environment. Ruzic advances to the second round with a convincing overall performance.