Karolína Muchová (Czech pronunciation: [ˈkaroliːna ˈmuxovaː]; born 21 August 1996) is a Czech professional tennis player. She has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 6 by the WTA, achieved in July 2026, and a best doubles ranking of No. 156, reached in January 2026. Muchová has won three WTA Tour singles titles, including a WTA 1000 event at the 2026 Qatar Ladies Open. She has contested two major singles finals, at the 2023 French Open and 2026 Wimbledon Championships.
Muchová turned professional in 2013. She first rose to prominence at the 2018 US Open, upsetting two-time major champion Garbiñe Muguruza in the second round. At the 2021 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. Following injury difficulties, she has had her career-best season in 2026, with her Qatar title and Wimbledon final. She also won her first Grand Slam title in the 2026 US Open mixed doubles.
Karolína Muchová was born in August 1996 in Olomouc, Czech Republic. Her father is former Czech footballer Josef Mucha. 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 racquet, and then when she was about 12, she chose tennis over handball. In 2019, she moved to Prague to train at the I. ČLTK Prague. She stated that her tennis idol growing up was Roger Federer. She struggled with a lot of injuries during her junior years.
Muchová began playing on the ITF Women's Circuit in October 2013 at the age of 17. Her first tournament was a $10k event in Dubrovnik, where she reached the second round. In July the following year, she won her first ITF title in Michalovce, 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. In July 2017, she reached the final of the $75k ITS Cup in Olomouc, losing there to her countrymate Markéta Vondroušová. She then made her WTA Tour main-draw debut at the 2017 Korea Open after defeating two low-ranked players, and then lost in the first round of the main draw to Priscilla Hon. She made her main-draw debut at a major event at the 2018 US Open winning three qualifying matches. After winning her opening-match against Dayana Yastremska, Muchová upset two-time Grand Slam champion and 12th seed Garbiñe Muguruza in the second round to score her first top-20 victory, advancing to the third round of the tournament. In the third round, she lost to Ashleigh Barty.
2019: Wimbledon quarterfinal, WTA 250 title
Ranked No. 139, Muchová made her main-draw debut at the Australian Open after qualifying. She lost in the first round to No. 8 Karolína Plíšková. Still after qualifying, Muchová made her main-draw debut at the Premier events at the Qatar Open. She defeated lucky loser Samantha Stosur and Hsieh Su-wei to reach her first Premier-level quarterfinal. She lost in the quarterfinals to No. 7 Elina Svitolina in straight sets. Still after qualifying, she debuted at the Premier Mandatory events at the Miami Open. She defeated qualifier Nao Hibino before losing to No. 4 Angelique Kerber.
Muchová received a wildcard into the Prague Open. She defeated qualifier Iga Świątek, Jennifer Brady, Natalia Vikhlyantseva, and Bernarda Pera to reach her first WTA Tour final. In the final, she lost to qualifier Jil Teichmann in three sets. Nevertheless, her ranking rose to No. 74. At the French Open, she defeated No. 17 Anett Kontaveit before losing to Irina-Camelia Begu.
At the Wimbledon Championships, Muchová defeated Aleksandra Krunić, Madison Brengle, and No. 20 Anett Kontaveit to reach the fourth round. She defeated No. 3 Karolína Plíšková in a match that went to a third-set tiebreak and lasted three hours to claim her first top 10 victory and reach her first major quarterfinal. She lost in the quarterfinals to No. 8 Elina Svitolina in straight sets. Reaching the quarterfinals, she reached a career-high ranking of No. 43.
At the US Open, Muchová defeated qualifier Elena Rybakina and No. 28 Hsieh Su-Wei before losing to No. 8 Serena Williams.
At the Korea Open, Muchová defeated Alison Van Uytvanck, qualifier Timea Babos, qualifier Priscilla Hon, and Wang Yafan to reach her second WTA tour final. In the final, she defeated Magda Linette in straight sets to claim her first WTA Tour title. At the Kremlin Cup, Muchová defeated Svetlana Kuznetsova, No. 21 Donna Vekić, and Ekaterina Alexandrova to reach the semifinals. In the semifinals, she lost to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in three sets. At the end of the season, Muchová qualified for the WTA Elite Trophy for the first time. She defeated Sofia Kenin and Alison Riske to make the semifinals. In the semifinals, she lost to Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets. She finished the year as world No. 21.
In 2020, Muchová produced rather mixed results. At the Australian Open, she defeated Kirsten Flipkens before losing to CiCi Bellis. At the Dubai Championships, she lost in the first round to qualifier Kateřina Siniaková. At the Qatar Open, she defeated Magda Linette before losing to No. 6 Kiki Bertens. After the six month suspension of the WTA Tour due to COVID-19 pandemic, Muchová first played at the Cincinnati Open. She beat qualifier Ann Li before losing to No. 10 Naomi Osaka. Her best performance of the season came at the US Open. She beat Venus Williams, Anna Kalinskaya, and Sorana Cîrstea to reach the fourth round, where she lost to No. 27 Victoria Azarenka in three sets. At the French Open, she lost in the first round to Christina McHale. At the Ostrava Open, she defeated Zhang Shuai before losing to No. 21 Elise Mertens. However, she spent the whole year inside the top 30.
2021: Australian Open semifinal, top 20
At the Australian Open, Muchová defeated Jeļena Ostapenko, Mona Barthel, No. 6 Karolína Plíšková, and No. 16 Elise Mertens, without dropping a set, to reach her second major quarterfinal and her first at the Australian Open. She came back from a set down to upset world No. 1 Ashleigh Barty and reach her first major semifinal. In the semifinals, she lost to No. 24 Jennifer Brady in three sets.
At the Madrid Open, Muchová defeated Wang Qiang in the first round. In the second round, she upset world No. 2 Naomi Osaka in three sets. She defeated No. 16 Maria Sakkari to reach her first WTA 1000 quarterfinal. In the quarterfinals, she lost to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in straight sets. Nevertheless, she reached a new career-high ranking of No. 19. At the French Open, she defeated Andrea Petkovic and qualifier Varvara Lepchenko before losing to Sloane Stephens.
At the Wimbledon Championships, Muchová defeated Zhang Shuai, Camila Giorgi, No. 19 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and Paula Badosa to reach her second consecutive Wimbledon quarterfinal. In the quarterfinals, she lost to No. 28 Angelique Kerber in straight sets.
At the US Open, Muchová was ousted in the first round by Sara Sorribes Tormo.
2022: Multiple injuries, out of top 200
Muchová didn't play at the Australian Open because of an injury. She came back at the Miami Open. She defeated Tereza Martincová and No. 22 Leylah Fernandez, but withdrew from her match against Naomi Osaka due to a left abdominal injury.