Britain’s Sonay Kartal upset ninth seed Belinda Bencic 6-0, 7-5 at the Wuhan Open as she continued to rebuild momentum after a long injury layoff.
Kartal, 24, reached a career-high ranking of 44 last year but has slipped to 170th in the world following a six-month absence. She returned to action for Great Britain at last month’s Billie Jean King Cup Finals and reached the third round at the Beijing Open last week. In her opening match in Wuhan, she beat Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina.
The win over Swiss world number 12 Bencic, a Wimbledon semi-finalist last year, was the second-biggest victory of Kartal’s career by ranking.
“I trusted that I would be able to get my level back, I just didn’t know how quickly,” Kartal said.
“I did a lot of things right today, but I still think there’s a long way to go. I can produce the level, but can I sustain it? I think that’s going to be the hardest challenge. I’m happy to be back, I’m feeling good.”
Kartal will face Italian 15th seed Jasmine Paolini for a place in the quarter-finals.
Kartal suffered a stress fracture in her back in March, which caused her to miss three of this year’s four Grand Slams, including Wimbledon. Before the break, she was in good form. She beat American top-20 seeds Emma Navarro and Madison Keys at Indian Wells, then retired against Elena Rybakina in the third round because of the back issue.
In Beijing, Kartal beat Chinese 31st seed Wang Xinyu to reach the third round. She has now won four of her five matches since returning to the WTA Tour.
Sabalenka loses unexpectedly again as pattern continues
Four-time major champion Aryna Sabalenka suffered an early exit when she lost to American Ann Li in a dramatic second-round match. Top seed Sabalenka, who had a bye in the first round, fought off nine match points before 31st-ranked Li sealed a 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) victory on her 10th opportunity.
It was Sabalenka’s second straight defeat, following her loss to world number 34 Nikola Bartunkova in Beijing last week.
The 28-year-old Belarusian needed treatment for a knee injury in Wuhan. She led by a set and a break before Li turned the match around. Sabalenka saved five match points at 5-2, two at 5-4 and another pair in the tie-break, but she still lost from a strong position against an opponent ranked well below her. That pattern has hindered the world number two during a frustrating season.
“It was a crazy match. I didn’t start well and I missed opportunities, but she played well on those match points,” said Li, 26, who recorded the biggest victory of her career.
Sabalenka’s exit came shortly after American second seed Jessica Pegula lost 2-6, 7-6 (9-7), 6-3 to Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko.
Former world number one Iga Swiatek advanced on Wednesday, recording her 40th win of the season with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over fellow Pole Magdalena Frech.