Zheng Qinwen beats Andreeva to win China Open as a wildcard

Zheng Qinwen won the China Open in Beijing on Sunday, beating fourth seed Mirra Andreeva 7-5, 6-4 in the final. She is the first Chinese woman to win the WTA 1000 title in Beijing, and the victory is her first title of any kind since Tokyo in late 2024.

A wildcard champion

Zheng entered the event on a wildcard while ranked No. 54. According to the WTA, she is the first wildcard to win the China Open since the tournament was relaunched in 2004, and the lowest-ranked champion in that period. Her ranking had fallen as low as No. 160 during the season, and the title is expected to lift her back into the top 30 next week.

It is her first WTA 1000 title and the sixth WTA Tour title of her career. The win over Andreeva was the 14th of her career against a top-10 opponent and her third this season.

How the final unfolded

The final lasted one hour and 43 minutes. Andreeva made the faster start, breaking early to lead 2-0, but Zheng drew level. The Chinese player then saved three set points in the tenth game of the first set and went on to win the last 11 points of the opener.

The second set was tighter. The two exchanged early breaks before Zheng broke again in the ninth game and served out the match.

Her route to the title was demanding. Zheng won each of her first four matches in three sets before taking her last three in straight sets. The WTA noted that she dropped 78 games across the tournament, the most by a Tier I or WTA 1000 champion since that level began in 1990.

What the players said

Zheng said she had set out to prove a point to herself after a difficult season. “Everyone was saying I couldn’t come back,” she said, according to the WTA.

Andreeva said she had missed too many returns while trying to play aggressively and could not find her rhythm. She praised Zheng’s serving and said her opponent was “going to be raising her level even more soon.”

Andreeva still climbs

Defeat in the final does not stop Andreeva’s rise. The WTA projects that she will move up to No. 3 on Monday, which would make her the third-youngest player this century to reach the top three, after Maria Sharapova and Kim Clijsters.

For the full story of her career, from Olympic gold to this comeback, read our Zheng Qinwen profile.

For more on Zheng’s earlier rise, see our WTA rankings update from October 2023, and our guide to how tennis rankings work.

Sources: WTA.