Great Britain’s Kartal Finds Her Way Back in Beijing

British player Sonay Kartal, 24, ranked No. 129 in the world, defeated home player and World No. 38 Wang Xinyu 6–3, 6–2 in the second round of the China Open, defying pre-match expectations. Her convincing win on Lotus Court secured her place in the third round.

From the outset, Kartal gave Wang little chance to settle into a rhythm. She won 71% of her first-serve points and used aggressive returning to create 14 break-point opportunities, converting five and repeatedly disrupting Wang’s attacking rhythm.

As Kartal pulled further ahead, the gap in their rankings mattered less and less.

After her win, Kartal said :“Overall I’m really happy with the level I showed. I was able to be aggressive at the right moments and also play safely when I needed to.”

Across the net, Wang felt that pressure keenly.

“I’ve been doing everything I can over the past week to recover from injury. Coming here to play outdoors, the rhythm and the bounce of the ball are completely different,” Wang said. “Her shots were heavy, and I could really feel the weight of the ball. That disrupted my rhythm and limited my attacking game to some extent.”

This was not Kartal’s first surprise in Beijing.

On her China Open debut in 2025, she reached her first WTA 1000 quarterfinal, also earning her first career victory over a top-10 player. Although her run ended there, Beijing became a special place in her career.

This year has been a different story. This March, Kartal withdrew through injury from the WTA 1000 event in Indian Wells, beginning a six-month absence from competition that saw her ranking fall outside the top 130. The China Open is her first WTA level tournament since that setback.

“It would be unrealistic to expect my absolute best tennis so soon after coming back. I’m taking it tournament by tournament. I hope that after a few more weeks on tour I can find the level I had six months ago,” she said.

Her victory over Wang at this year’s China Open offered hope of a return to her best.

Looking ahead to the next round, Kartal said: “The draw here is incredibly tough. Of course there might be some easier-looking match-ups, but you want to pit yourself against the best players in the world. So you can see where your level’s out.”

For Kartal, who is still working her way back to form, the victory was an encouraging sign.

Next, she will face another player fresh from an upset — Alina Charaeva.

Ranked just No. 118, Charaeva rallied from a set down to defeat newly crowned world No. 1 Elena Rybakina 3–6, 6–4, 6–3 and advance to the third round of the women’s singles. She will present another formidable challenge for Kartal.

By Zhao Yiwei, Liang Yanxi