Taylor Fritz came through a tense Washington Open final against Rafael Jodar, sealing the title with a straight-sets win in the United States capital.

The final was delayed until Monday after a storm hit Washington on Sunday, but the match still delivered plenty of drama. Fritz edged the contest 7-6, 6-4 to capture his first ATP title of the season and the 11th trophy of his career.

There was, however, a contentious moment late in the second set when Jodar called for a medical timeout at 7-6, 5-4, just as Fritz was preparing to serve for the match. Fritz was visibly frustrated by the decision, while his coach, Michael Russell, was seen mouthing ‘absolute bulls***’ in response.

Jodar did appear to be dealing with a genuine wrist problem after falling on it during the match, and the injury could affect his immediate schedule. Even so, the timing raised wider questions about whether a medical timeout should be allowed when an opponent is serving for the match. It was also not the first interruption of the day, with Jodar having earlier paused to deal with his shoelaces after Fritz had broken him in the second set.

The Spaniard pushed the issue as far as deuce in the final game and saved several match points before Fritz finally closed it out. The victory ended Fritz’s run of four consecutive ATP Tour final defeats, after losses in Tokyo, Dallas, Stuttgart, and Halle.

It was also his first ATP 500 title since 2022, when he won the Japan Open. Since then, Fritz has added six ATP 250 titles, but his record at the 500 level had been comparatively quiet.

Fritz remains world No 8, though Alex de Minaur, Daniil Medvedev, and Novak Djokovic are positioned just ahead of him and could be overtaken with a strong showing at the Canadian Open. Jodar, meanwhile, has reached a new career high of world No 15.

Jessica Pegula’s bid for a second Washington Open crown and the 12th title of her career was derailed by a long weather delay and an even stranger twist online. The final at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center was interrupted by thunderstorms, pushing the start back by several hours on Sunday afternoon.

When the match finally got underway, Pegula, the favourite, took the opening set 6-4 after breaking in game nine. The second set was only part-way through, with Eala leading 2-1, when rain returned. With lightning and rain still present, officials stopped play for the night at 6-4, 1-2.

That was the point at which search results created confusion. Anyone looking up “Pegula vs Eala” on Sunday evening or Monday morning was informed by Google AI that Pegula had won, even supplying a completed scoreline and a fabricated match report. The headline it produced read: “Jessica Pegula won the 2026 Mubadala DC Open singles titles, defeating Alexander Eala 6-4, 6-3 in the final.”

The AI also described a second set that never happened, claiming: “After play resumed following the lightning and rain delays, Pegula took total control. She broke Eala to charge ahead 4-2 and ultimately served out the match at 5-3, converting her first championship point with a cross-court forehand winner.”

The reality on Monday was the opposite. Eala seized control after the restart, broke in game 10 of the second set and forced a deciding set. She then won eight of the last 10 games, broke Pegula three times in the third set, and sealed the match on her second championship point for a 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 victory.

The 21-year-old made history as the first Filipina to win a WTA Tour singles title. Afterward, she addressed the crowd and made clear the result was genuine: “I feel so ​much love. My first chance at a title knowing it won’t be the last and ​already having achieved this milestone for my career,” Eala said on court. “I knew whatever happened after this match would have been already been a win for me.”

She also credited Pegula directly: “irst of all, of course, first and foremost congratulations Jessie for an amazing week and you’ve had an amazing season. It’s always a pleasure to share the court with you, I definitely learn so, so much,” Eala said.

“Especially from your forehand line and your backhand crosses. I’m really looking forward to hopefully many more finals with you.”

Taylor Fritz closed out the 2026 Washington DC Open by defeating Rafael Jodar in straight sets to claim the 11th title of his career.

After coming up short in each of his first three finals of the season, the American finally broke through with a 7-6 (7-2), 6-4 win over Jodar in the rain-delayed Monday final. It was also Fritz’s second ATP 500 title.

The result carried extra significance because Fritz had lost his previous four finals, including at the Dallas Open, Stuttgart Open and Halle Open earlier this year. In DC, he at last cleared the final hurdle.

“Thank you guys for everything,” Fritz told his team. “I have given this speech a lot recently but not as a winner, so it is nice to actually mean it a little bit more this time. Thank you so much for everything you do, staying on top of me all the time. I know it is not easy.”

Jodar was contesting only the second final of his career, after lifting his maiden title at the Grand Prix Hassan II in Morocco in April. Fritz also praised the younger player during his on-court interview, saying: “You’re so young and you’re just going to get better and better. I’m just going to get older, so thank you for letting me get this one today. It is incredible what you are doing this year.”

The rankings outcome was positive for both men. Fritz began the week at No 10 and moved up two places to No 8, taking over as the American No 1 after Ben Shelton slipped two spots. Because of the ATP’s 52-week system and the timing of points dropping from the 2025 Canadian Open, Fritz effectively added only 100 points despite winning an ATP 500 title worth 500 points.

Jodar had no points to defend from the 2025 Masters event, but points from the ATP Challenger Tour meant he added 316 rather than 330. Even so, the run sent him up nine places to a career-high No 15 and into the top 20 for the first time.

Fritz earned $461,835 and pushed his 2026 total to $2,692,744. His career prize money now stands at $32,008,653. Jodar collected $248,480, bringing his 2026 earnings to $2,041,383 and his career total to $2,387,281.