_25_(cropped2).jpg) Muchová at the2023 US Open | |
| Country (sports) |  Czech Republic |
|---|---|
| Born | (1996-08-21)21 August 1996 (age 29) Olomouc, Czech Republic |
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Turned pro | 2013 |
| Plays | Right (two-handed backhand) |
| Coach | Emil Miške (2017–2019, 2023–2025),Kirsten Flipkens (2023–2025)[1] |
| Prize money | US$ 10,394,090 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 320–157 |
| Career titles | 1 |
| Highest ranking | No. 8 (11 September 2023) |
| Current ranking | No. 21 (20 October 2025) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | SF (2021) |
| French Open | F (2023) |
| Wimbledon | QF (2019,2021) |
| US Open | SF (2023,2024) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Olympic Games | 1R (2024) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 40–34 |
| Career titles | 0 WTA, 1 ITF |
| Highest ranking | No. 207 (6 October 2025) |
| Current ranking | No. 211 (20 October 2025) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | 1R (2020) |
| French Open | 1R (2019) |
| US Open | 2R (2019) |
| Other doubles tournaments | |
| Olympic Games | SF (2024) |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| US Open | QF (2025) |
| Team competitions | |
| Fed Cup | 3–2 |
| Last updated on: 24 October 2025. | |
Karolína Muchová (Czech pronunciation:[ˈkaroliːnaˈmuxovaː]; born 21 August 1996) is a Czech professionaltennis player. She has a career-high singlesranking of world No. 8, achieved on 11 September 2023. Muchová has won oneWTA Tour title, at the2019 Korea Open, and contested amajor final at the2023 French Open.
Muchová turned professional in 2013.[2] She first rose to prominence at the2018 US Open, outlasting world No. 12 and two-time major champion,Garbiñe Muguruza, in the second round. In 2019, Muchová reached her first major quarterfinal atWimbledon by upsetting world No. 3,Karolína Plíšková. At the2021 Australian Open, she reached the semifinals by defeating world No. 1 and home favorite,Ashleigh Barty. At the 2023 French Open, she played in her first major final by defeating world No. 2,Aryna Sabalenka, in a hard-fought semifinal, finishing runner-up to defending champion and world No. 1,Iga Świątek, in a close three-set final.
Karolína Muchová was born in August 1996 inOlomouc, Czech Republic.[3] Her father is former Czech footballerJosef Mucha.[4] He introduced her to tennis at the age of seven. She also has a brother, with whom she did many sports when they were kids. Since there were tennis courts near her home, she decided to pick up a tennis racket, and then when she was about 12, she chose tennis over handball.[5] In 2019, she moved toPrague to train at theI. ČLTK Prague.[3][5] She stated that her tennis idol growing up wasRoger Federer.[2] She struggled with a lot of injuries during her junior years.[5]
Muchová began playing on theITF Women's Circuit in October 2013 at the age of 17. Her first tournament was a $10k event inDubrovnik, where she reached the second round.[6] In July the following year, she won her first ITF title inMichalovce, Slovakia. She then started to produce low-performances until March 2016, when she won her second singles title at Sharm El Sheikh, and two weeks later another event at the same venue.[7] In July 2017, she reached the final of the $75kITS Cup in Olomouc, losing there to her countrymateMarkéta Vondroušová. She then made herWTA Tour main-draw debut at the2017 Korea Open after defeating two low-ranked players, and then lost in the first round of the main draw toPriscilla Hon.[6] She made her main-draw debut at amajor event at the2018 US Open winning three qualifying matches. After winning her opening-match againstDayana Yastremska,[8] Muchová upset two-time Grand Slam champion and 12th seedGarbiñe Muguruza in the second round to score her first top-20 victory, advancing to the third round of the tournament.[9] In the third round, she lost toAshleigh Barty.[10]
.jpg)
She started the 2019 season with a first-round loss at theAustralian Open, losing toKarolína Plíšková.[11] She then at thePremier-levelQatar Ladies Open made her first WTA Tour quarterfinal by defeatingSamantha Stosur andHsieh Su-wei, but then lost to seed No. 4,Elina Svitolina.[6][12] At theMiami Open, she debuted at thePremier Mandatory level-tournaments but was eliminated in the second round byAngelique Kerber.[13] Her first Tour-level final came at thePrague Open where she lost toJil Teichmann.[14] Her performance was enough to take her for the first time into the top 100 of theWTA rankings.[15] In June, she beatAnett Kontaveit to reach the second round of theFrench Open,[16] where she lost toIrina-Camelia Begu.[17] In July, she reached quarterfinals of theWimbledon Championships, beating third seed Karolína Plíšková 13–11 in the final set of their fourth-round match, which lasted over three hours.[18] She became the first player to reach the quarterfinals at her Wimbledon debut sinceLi Na in 2006.[19] In the quarterfinal, Muchová lost toElina Svitolina.[20] She followed this with a quarterfinal at theBronx Open and third round of theUS Open, where she was beaten bySerena Williams.[6][21] Her maiden WTA Tour title came at 2019Korea Open, where she defeatedMagda Linette in the final.[22] Muchová then continued with good results, reaching semifinals of the Premier-levelKremlin Cup, in which she lost toAnastasia Pavlyuchenkova.[23] At the end of the year, she debuted at theWTA Elite Trophy with success in her round-robin group, defeating two Americans,Sofia Kenin andAlison Riske,[24] but later lost toAryna Sabalenka in the semifinal.[25] She finished the year as world No. 21.
In 2020, Muchová produced rather mixed results. She reached the second round of theAustralian Open for the first time in her career but lost toCiCi Bellis in straight sets.[26] She then played for the first time at theQatar Ladies Open, where she also recorded her first win over Magda Linette,[6] but lost to seventh seedKiki Bertens in round two.[27] After the six month suspension of the WTA Tour due toCOVID-19 pandemic, she first played at theCincinnati Open where she beat qualifierAnn Li in the first round,[6] before she lost toNaomi Osaka.[28] Her best performance of the season came at theUS Open, when she beat Venus Williams,[29]Anna Kalinskaya, andSorana Cîrstea[30][31] to reach her first round of 16 there before she lost toVictoria Azarenka.[32] By the end of the year, Muchová reached only the first round of theFrench Open and the second round of theOstrava Open.[6] However, she spent the whole year inside the top 30.[15]
Muchová reached the semifinals of theAustralian Open, beating world No. 1, Ashleigh Barty, but lost toJennifer Brady in three sets. After reaching the quarterfinals of theMadrid Open by defeating second seed Naomi Osaka and 16th seedMaria Sakkari, her first showing at the WTA 1000 level, Muchová reached a career-high of world No. 19 on 17 May 2021. Two weeks later in June, her good form continued when she got to the third round of theFrench Open, also for the first time in her career.
Seeded 19th atWimbledon, she reached the quarterfinals for the second time, defeating 30th seedPaula Badosa. Muchová was only the third woman in Wimbledon history to reach the quarterfinals on her first two appearances at the event (2019 and 2021).[33][34] The 22nd seeded Muchová was ousted in the first round of theUS Open bySara Sorribes Tormo, in straight sets.[35]
She didn't play at the Australian Open because of an injury.[36] As a result, she dropped out of the top 50. Muchová came back inMiami as an unseeded player. In the first round, she defeated fellow CzechTereza Martincová in two tie-break sets. Then, she defeated 18th seedLeylah Fernandez, before withdrawing from her third-round match against Naomi Osaka. InMadrid, using protected ranking, she defeated Chinese teenagerZheng Qinwen, before losing to 11th seedBelinda Bencic.
Ranked No. 81 at theFrench Open, her form improved substantially as she was able to reach the third round, defeating fourth seed and 2021 semifinalist Maria Sakkari in the second, in straight sets, for the biggest win of her career and her fourth top-5 win.[37] She retired in her next match againstAmanda Anisimova due to multiple injuries.[38] Despite the improvements in form, she finished the year outside of the top 100, at world No. 149.
Using her protected ranking, she returned to theAustralian Open and made the second round, as well as the quarterfinals atDubai, defeating eighth seed Belinda Bencic, for her seventh top 10 career win, but withdrew from her quarterfinal match, returning to the top 100 on 27 February 2023, after raising 35 positions.[39] Still using protected ranking inIndian Wells, she reached the fourth round by defeatingYulia Putintseva,[40] 14th seed Victoria Azarenka[41] and 23rd seedMartina Trevisan.[42] Next, she beatMarkéta Vondroušová to reach her third quarterfinal of the season and the second on the WTA 1000-level since Dubai. As a result, she gained 20 positions in the singles rankings.[43]
Ranked No. 43 at theFrench Open, she defeated world No. 8, Maria Sakkari, in the first round,[44] her second consecutive win at this major against the Greek and eighth top-10 win overall.[45][46] She beatNadia Podoroska,[47] Irina-Camelia Begu[48] and lucky loserElina Avanesyan[49] to reach the quarterfinals for the first time, andAnastasia Pavlyuchenkova[50] to reach her second Grand Slam tournament semifinal, and her first at Roland Garros. She upset world No. 2,Aryna Sabalenka, in a three-sets match, lasting over three hours, saving a match point and recovering from 2–5 down in the final set to reach her first Grand Slam final, as the fourth-lowest-ranked women’s finalist in the French Open history.[51] She became the fifth Czech player to reach the final at Roland Garros in theOpen Era.[52] In the final, she lost to world No. 1 and defending champion, Iga Świątek, in three sets.[53] As a result, she reached a new career-high ranking of No. 16, on 12 June 2023.[54]
InCincinnati, she reached the final of a WTA 1000 for the first time, losing to sixth seedCoco Gauff in two sets but she recorded a career-high ranking of No. 10.[55]At theUS Open, Muchová again hit a good form by reaching the semifinals of the tournament for the first time in her career and second at a major in the season. She won her opening three rounds in straight sets, defeatingStorm Hunter,[56]Magdalena Fręch,[57] andTaylor Townsend,[58] before getting pastWang Xinyu in three sets in the fourth round.[59] She then quickly dispatched Sorana Cîrstea in her quarterfinal match, only losing three games.[60] In the semifinals, she lost her second match to Coco Gauff in a month, falling in two sets in what would ultimately be her last match of the season.[61] Despite the loss, Muchová reached a career-high ranking of world No. 8 on 11 September 2023.[62]
Muchová qualified for the end-of-seasonWTA Finals for the first time, but was forced to withdraw from the tournament less than a week before it began due to a right wrist injury she suffered at the US Open.[63]
Muchová withdrew from theAustralian Open[64] and in February 2024 underwent surgery which made her skip the Middle Eastern swing and the USA Sunshine Double tournaments extending her hiatus.[65] She made her return to the WTA Tour in June at theEastbourne International, where she recorded her first win againstMagda Linette.[66] However, after some slight stiffness in her wrist she withdrew from the next round.[67] AtWimbledon, she lost in the first round toPaula Badosa in straight sets.[68] InPalermo, Muchová entered as a wildcard and defeated Irina-Camelia Begu in the last four to reach her first final since August 2023.[69] In the final, she lost in three sets to defending champion Zheng Qinwen.[70]
At theUS Open, Muchová reached the semifinals stage of the tournament for the second consecutive year, without dropping a set, defeatingKatie Volynets,[71]Naomi Osaka,[72]Anastasia Potapova,[73] fifth seedJasmine Paolini[74] and 22nd seed Beatriz Haddad Maia.[75][76] She lost in the last four to sixth seedJessica Pegula, in three sets.[77]
At theChina Open, she reached her sixth WTA Tour final defeatingAnna Blinkova,[78] 30th seedYuan Yue,[79]Jaqueline Cristian,[80]Cristina Bucșa,[81] top seed and world No. 2,Aryna Sabalenka[82] and fifth seed Zheng Qinwen.[83] In the final, she lost to Coco Gauff in straight sets.[84] Muchová continued to have good form at theNingbo Open, overcoming qualifierOlivia Gadecki,[85] Jacqeline Cristian[86] and seventh seed Anna Kalinskaya to reach the semifinals,[87] where she retired due to injury, after losing the first set toMirra Andreeva.[88]
As top seed at theLinz Open, Muchová received a bye in the first round and then defeated qualifierSara Sorribes Tormo[89] and sixth seedAnastasia Potapova[90] to make it through to the semifinals, where she lost to fourth seedEkaterina Alexandrova.[91]
At theDubai Championships she defeatedSuzan Lamens,[92]Emma Raducanu,[93]McCartney Kessler[94] and Sorana Cirstea, winning her ninth straight tour-level quarterfinal (excluding her 2024 Easbourne walkover), to reach her second semifinal of the season.[95] With the win Muchová won her last 10 quarterfinals she played (including United Cup), dating back to Indian Wells 2023.[96] She lost in the last four toClara Tauson.[97] Muchová became the Czech number one player taking overBarbora Krejčíková in the rankings.[citation needed]
.jpg)
Muchová is an aggressive all-court player, possessing an intelligent game with exceptional variety. She has powerful groundstrokes from both wings, using both her forehand and backhand to hit winners from any position on the court. She has been praised for her ability to incorporate softer shots, such as drop shots, lobs, andsliced backhands, into her game, constantly breaking up the pace of baseline rallies, and being able to hit winners with these typically defensive shots. She possesses a strong serve, with her first serve peaking at 110 mph (180 km/h) and averaging 103 mph (166 km/h), allowing her to serve aces frequently; she also possesses a second serve that, despite averaging 83 mph (134 km/h), possesses a high amount of topspin, meaning that it can be deployed effectively without being attacked by aggressive players. Muchová is also proficient at defending her second serve. Her footwork, speed, and anticipation allow her to be one of the strongest return players on the WTA Tour. As a result of her exemplary fitness, she is capable of sustaining long rallies, and is an effective counterpuncher, extending rallies until she can create an opportunity to hit a winner. Due to her doubles experience, Muchová is a strong net player, and is one of the strongest volleyers on tour, frequently approaching the net to finish off points. Throughout 2019, her breakout season, she was praised for her style of play byMats Wilander, who stated that she could "achieve great things". With her on-court demeanour, fluid style, grace, and variety, she has been compared by some commentators toJustine Henin andRoger Federer.[citation needed]
Muchová has had several coaches in her career: Emil Miške (2017–2019, Apr 2023–),David Kotyza (2020–Aug 2022), Jan Blecha (Sep 2022–Apr 2023), andKirsten Flipkens (2023–2025).[1]
Muchová is sponsored byAdidas for her attire and byHead for her rackets.[citation needed]
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | SR | W–L | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | A | A | 1R | 2R | SF | A | 2R | A | 2R | 0 / 5 | 8–5 | 62% |
| French Open | A | A | Q1 | 2R | 1R | 3R | 3R | F | A | 1R | 0 / 6 | 11–6 | 65% |
| Wimbledon | A | A | Q2 | QF | NH | QF | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 0 / 6 | 8–6 | 57% |
| US Open | Q1 | A | 3R | 3R | 4R | 1R | 1R | SF | SF | QF | 0 / 8 | 21–8 | 72% |
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 7–4 | 4–3 | 11–4 | 2–3 | 12–4 | 5–2 | 5–4 | 0 / 25 | 48–25 | 66% |
| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 2023 | French Open | Clay |  Iga Świątek | 2–6, 7–5, 4–6 |
| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4th place | 2024 | Paris Olympics | Clay | Linda Nosková |  Cristina BucșaSara Sorribes Tormo | 2–6, 2–6 |
Women's Tennis Association: Top European female singles tennis players | |
|---|---|
as of 15 September 2025 | |
| |
|
Women's Tennis Association: Top Czech female singles tennis players | |
|---|---|
as of 30 June 2025 | |
| |
|
