Four key questions ahead of the 2026 Lexus Nottingham Open

From former Grand Slam champions to the history of British winners – we break down four key questions ahead of the tournament.

Can Jovic become a grass court force?

18-year-old Iva Jovic is one of the most interesting players coming into the grass court season.

The American teenager has been on an incredible run over the last year – including a trophy in Guadalajara, final in Hobart and quarter-final at the Australian Open – propelling herself into the WTA top-20.

That all started last summer, when Jovic won her first career grass court title at the Lexus Ilkley Open with a dominant final performance over Rebecca Marino.

This was only a year after she claimed the Wimbledon girls’ doubles title and reached the semi-finals of the junior singles.

Even at this early stage in her career, grass seems to be a surface where she can have big success, both now and in the future.

Now with a year’s worth of WTA Tour experience under her belt as well, Jovic arrives in Nottingham not only as the top seed and one of the favourites for the title, but also as a future force on the grass.

Will the Brits re-capture Nottingham success?

The Lexus Nottingham Tennis Centre has been the home of British grass court titles over recent years.

Since 2019, there have been seven British singles titles across the women’s and men’s draws, including champions such as, Johanna Konta, Katie Boulter, Dan Evans, Andy Murray and Jacob Fearnley.

Added to that, there have been British winners in the men’s doubles for all but two seasons since 2016, and women’s doubles finalists in 2023 and 2024.

It’s safe to say, there’s something in the air in Nottingham, but coming off a 2025 tournament without a British champion – can the home favourites capture silverware this summer?

Two-time champion Boulter will be returning to her local tournament to try and complete her hat-trick this year, while 2024 title-winner Fearnley and last year’s Ilkley runner-up Jack Pinnington Jones headline the challenge in the men’s draw.

Keep an eye out for British wild cards Emma Raducanu, Harriet Dart, Francesca Jones, Billy Harris, Felix Gill and Oliver Tarvet, who could cause an upset in the East Midlands.

Who are the outside title contenders?

Everyone loves an outside challenger, ready to take on the top seeds for a chance to winning the title, and in Nottingham, there’s plenty to choose from.

Both of last year’s women’s singles finalists – McCartney Kessler and Dayana Yastremska – will be seen as outside contenders this year based on their rankings, but both return to Nottingham after stellar campaigns last year.

Qinwen Zheng just squeezed into the main draw on ranking, but the former world No.4 and Olympic gold medallist is working back from a long injury stretch between September and February.

Maria Sakkari and Emma Navarro are both former top-10 players who are poised to find form on the grass this year as well.

On the men’s side, Otto Virtanen of Finland has made back-to-back finals at the Lexus Birmingham Open, and Tristan Schoolkate is a former grass court champion in Ilkley.

Rising star Nicolai Budkov Kjaer didn’t have the best start in Birmingham this year, but has enjoyed a solid 2026 season so far, and is certainly one to watch for the future.

Will grass court experience prove the difference?

This year’s entry list features a number of experienced WTA stars, who have found some of the greatest successes of their careers on grass.

2024 Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova is one player who will certainly be on the radar as a title contender this year.

A thigh issue slightly hampered the Czech’s grass court season in 2025, so it will be interesting to see what form she can find over the summer.

Another Wimbledon finalist in the draw is Karolina Pliskova. The former world No.1 has previously won titles in Nottingham and Eastbourne on grass, and made the Nottingham final as recently as 2024, when she lost to Boulter.

Finally, 2025 HSBC Championships title-winner Tatjana Maria is into the draw this year and has a game style that can cause issues for players on the grass.