Zheng Qinwen Wins China Open as Wildcard, Beating Andreeva for First Title in Two Years
Zheng Qinwen won the China Open in Beijing on Sunday 11 October, beating Mirra Andreeva 7–5, 6–4 in the final to become the first Chinese woman to lift the WTA 1000 title. The Olympic champion entered as a wildcard ranked No. 54, after an elbow injury had dropped her as low as No. 160 this season, the WTA reported. The Zheng Qinwen China Open triumph is her first title in nearly two years.
Zheng sealed victory with an ace on her first match point and fell to the court in tears. She will return to the world’s top 30 this week.
How Zheng Won the Final
Andreeva, the Roland Garros champion and fourth seed, led 5–4 in the first set and had three set points. However, Zheng saved all three and then won 11 points in a row to take the set, the Associated Press reported.
She then broke late in the second set to close out the match in an hour and 43 minutes. Afterwards, Zheng sang a pop song at the trophy ceremony, drawing loud cheers from the home crowd.
“I’ve been through a very tough year,” Zheng said, as quoted by the AP. She added that many people had doubted her during her comeback.
A History-Making Zheng Qinwen China Open Run
Zheng’s title broke several records, according to the WTA. She is the first wildcard to win the event since it was relaunched in 2004, and the lowest-ranked champion in that time.
It was also a gruelling path. She won her first four matches in three sets and dropped 78 games across the tournament, the most by any WTA 1000 champion since the format began in 1990. Along the way, she beat Elina Svitolina in the quarter-finals, Just Women’s Sports reported.
The win gives Zheng her first WTA 1000 title and the sixth tour title of her career. Her last trophy came in Tokyo in late 2024.
From Paris Gold to the Comeback Trail
Zheng won Olympic gold in Paris in 2024 and reached a career-high ranking of No. 4 last year. She also earned an estimated $22.6 million in 2025, placing fifth among the highest-paid female athletes, according to Forbes.
However, an elbow injury derailed her 2026 season and sent her ranking tumbling. As a result, she needed a wildcard to enter her home tournament in Beijing.
Andreeva Still Rises to World No. 3
Despite the defeat, Andreeva will climb to a career-high No. 3 in the rankings. She will be the third-youngest player this century to reach the top three, after Maria Sharapova and Kim Clijsters, the WTA reported.
“For sure today she played great,” Andreeva said of Zheng, as quoted by the AP.
A Turbulent Week in Beijing
The tournament also made headlines off the court. Coco Gauff received racist abuse online after a replayed point in her win over 16-year-old Sun Xinran, and she later withdrew from the Wuhan Open.
Read our reports on Gauff’s response to the abuse and Karolína Muchová’s nine-match-point win over Naomi Osaka. Was this the best comeback of the season? Let us know in the comments.
