Zheng Erases 5-0 Deficit to Reach Third US Open Quarterfinal

Qualifier Zheng Qinwen produced a seven-game surge from 5-0 down in the opening set and defeated eighth seed Iga Swiatek 7-5, 6-3 in the US Open fourth round on Monday. The straight-sets victory put Zheng into the women's singles quarterfinals in New York for the third time.

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The WTA reported that Swiatek won eight of the first nine points and moved within one game of the first set with a love hold. Zheng then held for 5-1 and began the comeback. She saved another set point while breaking for 5-4, levelled with a forehand winner and broke again when Swiatek double-faulted on break point. A love hold completed Zheng's run of seven consecutive games.

Zheng carried that momentum into the second set. She escaped two break points while serving at 2-3, then broke for a 4-3 lead with a backhand return winner. Swiatek saved three match points late in the contest, but two backhand errors ended the match after one hour and 56 minutes, according to the WTA's match account.

The result improved Zheng's tour-level record against Swiatek to 2-7. Both of her victories have come on major stages: she also beat the Polish player in the semifinals of the 2024 Paris Olympics before winning the gold medal. The WTA said Zheng became the first qualifier or lucky loser to defeat Swiatek at a Grand Slam after Swiatek had won her previous 15 such matches.

Zheng is also the first qualifier to reach the US Open women's quarterfinals since Emma Raducanu won the championship in 2021. Her run has included another dramatic recovery: two days earlier, she came back from 5-0 down in the deciding set and saved a match point before eliminating 22nd seed Madison Keys 1-6, 7-6(3), 7-5.

Swiatek, the 2022 US Open champion and a six-time major winner, will finish 2026 without a Grand Slam title. She said after Monday's defeat that her timing and ball-striking had been poor and that Zheng's pressure left little room to adopt a safer approach. Zheng's quarterfinal opponent will be the winner of the fourth-round match between second seed Elena Rybakina and 13th seed Naomi Osaka.