Maja Chwalińska won the Wuhan Open on Sunday 18 October, coming from a set down to beat Britain’s Sonay Kartal 2–6, 6–4, 6–2 for her first WTA title. The Polish left-hander, who reached the Roland Garros final as a qualifier in June, needed two hours and 43 minutes to land the WTA 1000 crown in China, according to the WTA.
The Chwalińska Wuhan Open win completes a remarkable rise. She will climb to a career-high 11th in the world, while runner-up Kartal jumps from 170th to 49th.
How Chwalińska Won the Wuhan Open Final
Kartal made the brighter start and took the first set 6–2. Chwalińska later admitted she felt flat early on. “I feel like my energy level was very low at the beginning,” she told the WTA.
However, the Pole found her rhythm in the second set and levelled the match. Then she pulled away in the decider, breaking Kartal’s serve to close out the title.
Afterwards, she summed up the moment simply. “It tastes very sweet,” Chwalińska said.
The Records Behind the Chwalińska Wuhan Open Title
The win put Chwalińska into some select company, the WTA said:
- She is the third Polish player to win a WTA 1000 title, after Agnieszka Radwańska and Iga Świątek.
- She is the first left-hander to win a WTA 1000 event since Petra Kvitová in Miami in 2023.
- She is only the fourth player since 2009 whose first WTA title came at WTA 1000 level, after Naomi Osaka, Bianca Andreescu and Victoria Mboko.
- She is the fourth first-time WTA 1000 champion of 2026, after Karolína Muchová, Marta Kostyuk and Zheng Qinwen.
The prize was significant too. The champion earned $665,000 and 1,000 ranking points, while Kartal took $385,001 and 650 points, according to the WTA.
A Semi-Final Win Over Świątek
Chwalińska reached the final by beating her childhood friend Iga Świątek 7–5, 6–1 in the first all-Polish semi-final of the Open Era, The Sports Encounter reported. Świątek served for the first set at 5–3 but then needed treatment on her left thigh.
After that, Chwalińska won 10 of the last 11 games. Świątek said she had felt pain in her quad since the start of the event, the WTA reported, and she has since ended her season.
Earlier in the week, Chwalińska also beat 10th seed Iva Jovic and then Maria Sakkari 6–0, 3–6, 7–5 in the quarter-finals.
From Qualifier to Top 11
Chwalińska’s season has already been historic. In June, she became the first women’s qualifier to reach a Roland Garros final, where she lost to Mirra Andreeva 6–3, 6–2.
Her ranking has soared since. Now, this title takes her from 22nd to a projected 11th in the world, the WTA said.
She also admitted the summer was tough after Paris. “I’m just a human,” she said, explaining that the sudden attention took time to handle.
Kartal’s Breakthrough Week
For Kartal, defeat should not hide the scale of her run. She arrived in Wuhan ranked 170th after six months out with a stress fracture in her back.
Then she beat Belinda Bencic, Jasmine Paolini and world No. 6 Elina Svitolina before edging Jelena Ostapenko 7–6, 7–6 in the semi-finals. That made her only the second British woman, after Johanna Konta, to reach a WTA 1000 final.
As a result, she is projected to return to the top 50, Tennis365 reported. Read the full story of how Kartal reached the last four.
What Comes Next
Chwalińska’s title came too late to secure a place at the WTA Finals in Indian Wells in November. However, it puts her in the conversation for next year’s biggest events.
Meanwhile, Kartal heads into 2027 with real momentum and a far better ranking. See how ranking points work in our WTA rankings explainer, and read about Ann Li’s shock win over Aryna Sabalenka earlier in the week.
Who impressed you most in Wuhan? Tell us in the comments.
