Home favorite Qinwen Zheng and fourth-seeded Mirra Andreeva of Russia will be chasing history when they meet Sunday in the final at the China Open in Beijing.
Zheng is looking to become the first Chinese player to win the WTA 1000 tournament, and the 19-year-old Andreeva can become the youngest China Open champion since Agnes Szavay in 2007.
Both advanced in straight sets in the semifinals on Saturday, with Zheng defeating No. 13 seed Elise Mertens of Belgium 7-5, 6-2 in 92 minutes and Andreeva taking care of No. 26 Nikola Bartunkova of the Czech Republic 6-2, 6-2 in just 74 minutes.
Andreeva struck 16 winners and committed only 10 unforced errors.
“I’m very happy and excited to be in the finals,” Andreeva said after the win. “I think I played very good today. I’m super happy with the way I was playing. Of course, Nikola is a very tricky opponent. We had a tough match at the U.S. Open. But I’m super happy I won today.”
It was the 50th win of the season for Andreeva, tied with Jessica Pegula for the most on the WTA Tour in 2026. She is playing in her fifth final of the season, matching Pegula, Elena Rybakina and Aryna Sabalenka for the season-high. Andreeva is looking for her fourth title of the calendar year.
Andreeva, who converted five of 10 break points, said she has been spending extra training time working on her service returns.
“I feel like even if the opponent serves well, you still have to try and put some pressure on the server,” she said. “I feel like the work is paying off little by little. So super happy with those numbers.”
Zheng won their lone previous meeting, rallying for a 5-7, 6-0, 6-4 victory against Andreeva in the Beijing quarterfinals two years ago.
Before Zheng’s breakthrough on Saturday, Chinese players were 0-7 in the semifinals of the China Open.
“The China Open treats me really well,” Zheng said in her post-match interview. “I always want to give my best here. It’s like the fifth Grand Slam for me. I just really want to give everything I have for this stadium.”
Zheng delivered eight aces against Mertens and finished with a 32-9 advantage in winners. She won 23 of 26 points on her first serve and won eight of the last 10 games to reach her second career WTA 1000 final.
–Field Level Media
