Wildcard Zheng stuns Andreeva to win first WTA 1000 crown on home soil in Beijing
Chinese wildcard Qinwen Zheng beat Mirra Andreeva (No. 4) 7-5, 6-4 on Sunday to win the China Open, the first WTA 1000 title of her career. The former World No. 4, who fell down the rankings after a serious right elbow injury, fought through a record 78 dropped games on her way to the trophy and celebrated with karaoke at the ceremony.
Qinwen Zheng, Beijing 2026 | © Zuma / PsNewz
Qinwen Zheng completed a remarkable week on home soil on Sunday, the Chinese wildcard beating Russian No. 4 seed Mirra Andreeva 7-5, 6-4 in the final of the Beijing WTA 1000 to claim the first WTA 1000 title of her career.
Ranked No. 54, Zheng became the first Chinese player to win the China Open since its first edition in 2004, and its lowest-ranked champion over that span.
Zheng sets a record for games dropped by a WTA 1000 champion
Zheng had to fight for every round. She opened with a 7-6 (6), 4-6, 6-2 win over Chinese qualifier Han Shi, then beat Russian No. 15 seed Anna Kalinskaya 6-7 (4), 6-4, 3-0, ret., Czech No. 18 seed Marie Bouzkova 7-6 (3), 4-6, 7-5 and Armenian Alina Charaeva 6-1, 2-6, 6-4. She knocked out Ukrainian No. 6 seed Elina Svitolina 6-3, 7-6 (6) in the quarterfinals and Belgian No. 13 seed Elise Mertens 7-5, 6-2 in the semifinals.
She dropped 78 games across her seven matches, the most by any champion at a Tier I or WTA 1000 event since the format was introduced in 1990.
The final turned on Zheng’s return. She landed only 38 percent of her first serves but won 23 of 36 points behind her second serve, while Andreeva won only 10 of 22 behind hers. Zheng took 40 percent of the points on Andreeva’s first serve, broke four times from eight chances and saved four of the six break points she faced.
The title capped a return to form for a player who once reached a Grand Slam final at the Australian Open. Zheng had risen to World No. 4 before a serious injury to her right elbow stopped her in her tracks and sent her tumbling down the rankings.
Winning my first WTA 1000 title here in China means everything to me
“I want to thank my team for supporting me because I’ve been through a very tough year,” Zheng said after the final. “Winning my first WTA 1000 title here in China means everything to me, and this trophy belongs to all of you.”
Her win at her country’s biggest tournament was a best-case scenario for women’s tennis, putting one of its most magnetic players back among the big-title winners. If she is at 100 percent, she has the game to be back near the top next year.
Zheng marked the occasion with her trademark karaoke at the trophy ceremony, as she had when she celebrated her Zhengzhou title in 2023.
Andreeva, ranked No. 5, had reached her first final in Beijing on her fourth appearance at the event, after a quarterfinal in 2024.
