How Yuan Yue Found Joy and Balance Amid Setbacks

Cheers and shouts of encouragement filled Diamond Court as Chinese tennis player Yuan Yue, 28, ranked No. 135 in the world, took the opening set 6–3 against world No. 5 Mirra Andreeva at the China Open on Day 3.

However, Andreeva swept the next two sets 6–0, 6–0 to end Yuan’s run in the second round.

For Yuan, the result was not the only thing that mattered.

“My only goal at the China Open was to play happy tennis,” Yuan said after the match. “I wasn’t too focused on the result. I just wanted to focus on how I was feeling and enjoy the process.”

That mindset marked a change for Yuan, who said she had previously become too caught up in individual matches and struggled to get out of that state.

“I’m proud of myself for making that adjustment,” she said. “I also found a better balance between the pressure and the enjoyment of playing tennis.”

The shift was visible in the opening set. Against Andreeva, Yuan tried more changes in her game, including coming to the net and playing drop shots — shots she said she had previously been less comfortable or less willing to attempt. She took the first set 6–3 before Andreeva gradually took control.

Yuan started playing tennis at 10 and made her WTA main-draw debut in doubles in 2018. Her first WTA singles final followed in 2023. In 2024, a nine-match winning streak carried her to her first WTA singles title in Austin and the Indian Wells quarterfinals. She later reached a career-high No. 36. She ended 2025 ranked No. 129 and now stands at No. 135, fifth among China’s women.

The loss, however, also exposed a problem Yuan has been trying to address: sustaining her level physically against the world’s top players.

“I think the main reason I lost the second and third sets was that I was starting to run out of energy, while she was able to maintain a high physical level from beginning to end,” Yuan said.

A similar pattern had appeared at the Australian Open earlier this year. Yuan faced then-world No. 2 Iga Swiatek in the first round and pushed the opening set to a tiebreak before losing 7–6(5), 6–3.

“Whether it was against Swiatek or Mirra Andreeva, toward the end I felt their physical ability was much stronger than mine,” she said. “I hope to work hard on my fitness during the winter training period after this season.”

But Yuan said physical fitness is not the only change she wants to make. After what she described as a mentally challenging year, she is also trying to change her relationship with competition.

“This year has been mentally challenging, and I feel a bit drained,” she said. “I hope to take some time to reset.”

Yuan said she may play at the Wuhan Open but hopes to finish her China swing relatively early to give herself time to recover.

While Yuan’s China Open run is over, Zheng Qinwen, Wang Xinyu and 16-year-old Sun Xinran remain among the Chinese women to watch as the tournament moves forward.

Yuan left the tournament with a mindset she hopes to carry into future matches.

“Even when I’m under pressure or really, really want to win,” she said, “I want to find a way to enjoy tennis and bring out my best.”

By Zhao Yiwei and Liang Yanxi