Sonay Kartal upset ninth seed Belinda Bencic 6-0 7-5 at the Wuhan Open, as the Briton continued to build momentum after a long injury absence.
Kartal reached a career-high ranking of 44 last year but has slipped to 170th in the world after six months out. The 24-year-old returned to action for Great Britain at last month’s Billie Jean King Cup Finals and reached the third round in Beijing last week. She then beat Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina in her opening match in Wuhan.
Bencic, the Swiss world number 12 and a Wimbledon semi-finalist last year, was beaten in a victory that ranks as the second biggest of Kartal’s career by ranking.
“I trusted that I would be able to get my level back, I just didn’t know how quickly,” Kartal said.
“I did a lot of things right today, but I still think there’s a long way to go. I can produce the level, but can I sustain it? I think that’s going to be the hardest challenge. I’m happy to be back, I’m feeling good.”
Kartal will face Italian 15th seed Jasmine Paolini for a place in the quarter-finals.
Kartal suffered a stress fracture in her back in March, which meant she missed three of this year’s four Grand Slams, including Wimbledon. Before that break, she was in good form. She reached the fourth round at her home Slam last year and beat American top-20 seeds Emma Navarro and Madison Keys at Indian Wells. She then retired against Elena Rybakina in the third round because of the back issue.
Since returning, Kartal has beaten Chinese 31st seed Wang Xinyu in Beijing and has won four of her five matches on her return to the WTA Tour.
Sabalenka out early again
Aryna Sabalenka, the four-time major champion, suffered an unexpected early exit when she lost to American Ann Li in a dramatic second-round match in Wuhan.
Top seed Sabalenka, who had a bye in the first round, saved nine match points before 31st-ranked Li finally sealed a 3-6 6-4 7-6 (7-5) victory on her 10th opportunity. It was Sabalenka’s second successive defeat, following her loss to world number 34 Nikola Bartunkova in Beijing last week.
The 28-year-old Belarusian needed treatment for a knee injury in Wuhan. She led by a set and a break before Li turned the contest around. Sabalenka saved five match points at 5-2, two at 5-4 and another pair in the tie-break, but she was beaten again from a strong position against an opponent ranked well below her. That pattern has hindered the world number two during a frustrating season, in which she has reached two Grand Slam finals without winning either.
“It was a crazy match. I didn’t start well and I missed opportunities, but she played well on those match points,” said Li, 26, who recorded the biggest victory of her career.
Sabalenka’s exit came shortly after American second seed Jessica Pegula was beaten 2-6 7-6 (9-7) 6-3 by Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko.
Former world number one Iga Swiatek did progress on Wednesday, recording her 40th win of the season with a 6-2 6-1 victory over fellow Pole Magdalena Frech.