Great Britain's Sonay Kartal beats world No 5 Mirra Andreeva in China Open for biggest victory of her career
Sonay Kartal beats Mirra Andreeva for statement win in Beijing as she makes first WTA 1000 quarter-final; 23-year-old moves above Katie Boulter in live rankings and now British No 2; Kartal will face 26th seed Linda Noskova in the last eight
Wednesday 1 October 2025 15:55, UK
Great Britain's Sonay Kartal recorded the biggest win of her career with a three-set victory over world No 5 Mirra Andreeva in the last 16 of the China Open.
Kartal's 7-5 2-6 7-5 success in Beijing - her first over a top-10 player - took her into the quarter-finals of a WTA 1000 event for the first time and she will now face 26th seed Linda Noskova.
The 23-year-old had not dropped a set across her first three matches in China, sweeping aside Alycia Parks, 14th seed Daria Kasatkina and Maya Joint.
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Kartal recovered from losing the second set against Andreeva, sealing victory with her second match point as her opponent - who won back-to-back 1000 events in Dubai and Indian Wells earlier this year - fired wide.
Kartal has now risen above Katie Boulter in the WTA live rankings, taking her to British No 2, behind Emma Raducanu.
The Brit said: "I knew today was going to be far from easy.
"She's a top-10 player for a very good reason and she made me play my best tennis today, so credit to her.
"I'm super happy with the level I managed to dig out in the end. I just tried to put that second set behind me.
"She played some great tennis so I just tried to level it out in the third set and keep the scoreboard pressure as high as I could."
Kartal has enjoyed a strong season on the WTA Tour, making the last 16 at Wimbledon and Indian Wells, while she reached a career-high ranking of No 44 in July.
She added: "I think the way I carry myself on the court is one of my biggest assets. You could look down the other end at me and you wouldn't really know if I'm winning or losing."
Navarro stuns top seed Swiatek
Emma Navarro caused another big shock by knocking out top seed Iga Swiatek.
American Navarro, seeded 16th, had not won more than three games in two previous matches against Swiatek, but she turned the tables to triumph 6-4 4-6 6-0.
It was an erratic performance from the Pole, who lost a love set for the third time this season.
Elsewhere, Britain's Harriet Dart lost her opening-round match at a challenger level event in Turkey to Isabella Shinikova.
Dart lost 6-2 6-4 to her Bulgarian opponent, failing to maintain the momentum she had built last week by winning a lower-level event in Tunisia.
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