Donna Vekic vs Iga Swiatek — R32 — China Open

Iga Swiatek trailed Donna Vekic by a set and 2-5 before winning in three sets to reach the China Open round of 16. Swiatek, the eighth seed and 2023 Beijing champion, was an 85 percent favorite in the betting market. She still needed 2 hours, 39 minutes to get past the 30th-seeded Croatian. Vekic broke in the third game on her way to the opening set. She broke twice more in the second to lead 5-2. Swiatek broke her as she served for the match in game 8 and again in game 10 to level at 5-5, then won the tiebreak without dropping a point. The deciding set opened with an exchange of breaks before Swiatek broke in games 5 and 7 for a 5-2 lead of her own. Vekic was the more efficient player on break points. She converted four of five, while Swiatek needed 13 chances for her five breaks. Vekic won 75 percent of her first-serve points in the opening set but 39 percent in the third. Three of her five double faults also came in that set. Vekic, ranked WTA No. 40, came into the match with a 3-9 hard-court record this season. Since the start of Wimbledon, she has now lost six matches in which she won the opening set.