Zheng Qinwen staged yet another remarkable turnaround at the US Open, overcoming six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek with a 7-5, 6-3 victory to advance to the quarter-finals. Swiatek looked dominant early on, securing a 5-0 lead in the first set. However, Zheng shifted the momentum dramatically by capturing seven consecutive games to claim the set, then maintained her form in the second to complete one of her most significant career triumphs.
This victory was all the more impressive given Zheng’s similar comeback in the prior round against Madison Keys, where she also found herself trailing 5-0 in the deciding set before rallying to win seven straight games. Zheng’s journey to this point has been challenging; her season saw a dip in form due to an elbow injury and subsequent surgery, which dropped her ranking to as low as No. 160 earlier in the year. She even had to start the US Open through the qualifying rounds.
The 23-year-old’s resurgence is notable, having previously captured Olympic gold in Paris and reached the final of the 2024 Australian Open. Her string of seven victories in New York has reestablished her as a formidable competitor. Zheng is now set to face second seed Elena Rybakina in the quarter-finals. Rybakina secured her spot in the last eight by defeating two-time US Open champion Naomi Osaka with a commanding 6-1, 6-4 win.
Rybakina’s performance against Osaka was characterized by powerful and consistent play, as she hit 29 winners within just 66 minutes. Osaka struggled throughout the match, particularly with her serve, and was also hampered by Achilles pain. In other matches, fifth seed Mirra Andreeva made her way into the US Open quarter-finals for the first time by overcoming Austria’s Anastasia Potapova with a 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 victory.