Zhang stuns US Open semifinalist Navarro in Beijing

China's 595th-ranked Zhang Shuai, who earlier this week won her first match in more than 600 days, stunned US Open semifinalist Emma Navarro 6-4, 6-2 in Beijing on Friday.

Flipping over a new chapter 📖@zhangshuai121 shocks the No 6 seed Navarro in Beijing!#ChinaOpen pic.twitter.com/jIhWH8NRTz

— wta (@WTA) September 27, 2024

The 35-year-old Zhang reached round three of the China Open, where she is the lowest-ranked player to ever compete in the main draw of the WTA 1000 tournament.

On Wednesday, Zhang won her first singles match since January 2023 to snap a painful streak of 24 defeats on the WTA Tour.

Coming into the prestigious event as a wildcard, the former top-25 player defeated the 65th-ranked American McCartney Kessler in straight sets.

Zhang, a two-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist who has been plagued by injuries, repeated the feat with a surprise victory over the American sixth seed Navarro.

"Another great win for my career because everybody knows I have gone a long time not winning a singles match," Zhang, who has won two Grand Slam doubles titles, said on Friday.

She seemed as surprised as anybody that she had beaten Navarro, who was a hot favourite having reached the last four in New York just a few weeks ago.

"I like to give to everybody a surprise," Zhang said with a smile.

She faces Belgium's world number 94 Greet Minnen next, and said she felt right at home in Beijing because she comes from the nearby city of Tianjin.

"The court, the weather, the air, everything, I feel so comfortable. I play very natural," she said.

"I can play Zhang Shuai tennis."

In the Open Era, only one player has ever lost more than 24 matches in a row on the WTA Tour, excluding the Billie Jean King Cup.

That came in the early days of the tour when Madeleine Pegel lost her first 29 matches from 1968 to 1972.