I cannot shake the feeling that the 2025 Mubadala Citi Open is somewhat ho-hum this year. Last year, it was in the crosshairs of the 2024 Paris Olympics so it lost its prominence. This year, it just feels like the beginning of the US hardcourt season is getting off to a slow start despite the tennis calendar getting fuller and more intense.
Here are a few reasons why.
How has the ATP calendar changed over the past 10 years?
2015:
• Wimbledon Final – July 12
• 1st Day Canada Open – August 1028 DAYS OFF
2025:
• Wimbledon Final – July 13
• 1st Day Canada Open – July 2714 DAYS OFF
In 10 years the summer break has been cut in half. pic.twitter.com/lpkHUkJUXK
— Janniksin_Updates (@JannikSinner_Up) July 21, 2025
- Even though action continues in Washington, DC, everyone is talking about the upcoming Canadian and Cincinnati tournaments. Each is a 1000-level tournament that is extended to 12 days. For this reason, players have either opted out of DC or are opting out of DC and Canada and playing just Cincinnati before the US Open.
- Injuries overshadow this event. The men’s and women’s defending champions: Sebastian Korda and Paula Badosa are not competing in DC because of injuries. Taylor Townsend is the defending women’s doubles champion, but even she is playing with a different partner this year.
- American women top seeds lost in their first matches. Jessica Pegula and Emma Navarro unexpectedly lost after their first round byes.
The Mubadala Citi Open should be thanking its lucky stars that Venus Williams took the wildcard and played singles and doubles. Otherwise, this tournament would be completely without hype. Williams injected nostalgia and excitement into her matches in singles and doubles. She played a match per day in the first four days to capacity crowds who wanted to catch a glimpse of a legend in action. Her performances fell short in the second round, but she did enough to get a wildcard in Cincinnati and give over 40-something couch potatoes/wannabe athletes something to cheer about with her comeback. On the women’s side, the next best excitement surrounds Emma Raducanu playing singles and doubles (with Elena Rybakina).
Despite the loss, Venus Williams shares a moment with the crowd ☺️👏 #MubadalaCitiDCOpen pic.twitter.com/FCLrfFOU4E
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 25, 2025
Venus Williams leaves Washington with a smile
At 45, her legacy is written on the stones of sporting history
She didn’t have to come back out here, but she did, for no other reason than because she loves to play tennis
That type of love is legendary 🥹
pic.twitter.com/3iS3p5Ge7E— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) July 25, 2025
Watch the Mubadala Citi Open quarterfinals on Friday. One American woman remains: Taylor Townsend qualified in singles and is the last one standing. She is also playing a semifinal doubles match. Four American men are trying to continue last year’s American dominance in men’s singles: Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe, and Brandon Nakashima.
