Elena Rybakina experienced a surprising defeat to Alina Charaeva, ranked No. 118 in the world, in her first match since rising to No. 1. Rybakina, who became world No. 1 after winning the US Open last month—her second Grand Slam title of 2026—lost 6-3, 4-6, 3-6 in the first round of the China Open on Saturday.
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Charaeva, hailing from Armenia, had never faced a top-20 player prior to this match but managed to upset the top seed, earning a round-of-32 matchup against Britain’s Sonay Kartal. Charaeva expressed her disbelief after her victory, stating, "I don't have words. This is incredible. Of course Elena is an amazing player who is doing really good this season winning two Grand Slams. For me it's just a dream come true. I just tried to stay hard mentally and keep believing I could turn around the game to my side. Never stop believing, I guess!"
In other action, Carlos Alcaraz fought through a tough first-set tiebreak to secure his place in the quarter-finals of the Japan Open, defeating Matteo Arnaldi 7-6 (8-6), 6-1. Alcaraz will face world No. 46 Denis Shapovalov, who advanced after defeating Alejandro Tabilo 7-5, 3-6, 6-4.
Meanwhile, at the China Open, Alexander Zverev, US Open champion, progressed to a quarter-final clash against Novak Djokovic after easily defeating wildcard Juncheng Shang 6-0, 6-3. Alex de Minaur, returning from a second-round exit at the US Open, also secured a quarter-final slot by overcoming France's Quentin Halys in three sets. This match will feature both players competing for points in the Race to Turin for the ATP Finals.
In women’s singles, Coco Gauff returned from a three-week break with a victory at the China Open, winning against world No. 66 Camila Osorio 7-6(7-4), 4-6, 6-2. Meanwhile, Harriet Dart was eliminated by 10th seed Iva Jovic after losing in three sets. Iga Swiatek, back from her last-16 exit at the US Open, easily won her match against China's Xinyu Gao, and Elina Svitolina recovered from losing the first set to secure a spot in the next round.