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.
Andreeva was hoping to secure a third WTA 1000 title after back-to-back wins in Dubai and Indian Wells this year
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 will play 26th seed Linda Noskova in the the China Open quarter-finals
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.”
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