Sonay Kartal Wins on WTA Return After Six-Month Injury Break
- Britain's Sonay Kartal defeated Spain's Andrea Lazaro Garcia 6-2 6-3 at the China Open, securing a straight-sets victory in Beijing on her return to the WTA Tour following...
- Against Lazaro Garcia, world number 129 Kartal broke the qualifier's serve five times and landed 69 percent of her first serves to advance.
- Fellow Briton Cameron Norrie exited the tournament after a 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 defeat against US Open champion and world number two Alexander Zverev.
Britain’s Sonay Kartal defeated Spain’s Andrea Lazaro Garcia 6-2 6-3 at the China Open, securing a straight-sets victory in Beijing on her return to the WTA Tour following an injury layoff, bbc.co.uk reported. The 24-year-old missed nearly half a year of competition after injuring her lower back at Indian Wells in March. She made her initial return to the court at the Billie King Cup on 22 September, where she suffered a narrow defeat to Czech world number 26 Marie Bouzkova.
Sonay Kartal Returns With Beijing Victory
Against Lazaro Garcia, world number 129 Kartal broke the qualifier’s serve five times and landed 69 percent of her first serves to advance. The victory was aided by four double faults from her opponent, setting up a second-round match against Chinese 31st seed Wang Xinyu.
Cameron Norrie Falls to Alexander Zverev
Fellow Briton Cameron Norrie exited the tournament after a 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 defeat against US Open champion and world number two Alexander Zverev. Meanwhile, Harriet Dart secured a three-set victory over China’s Yihan Qu, winning 6-2 6-7 (5-7) 7-5. In the men’s draw at the Japan Open, British number one Arthur Fery lost 6-4 3-6 6-4 to Portuguese lucky loser Jaime Faria in the first round.
Carlos Alcaraz and Holger Rune Struggle on Return
Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz overcame a slow start to claim a 7-6 (7-1) 4-6 6-1 win over Alex Michelsen on the ATP Tour. Sidelined for just over five months with a wrist injury before returning at the US Open, the Spanish world number three committed five double faults against Michelsen. Alcaraz saved five of 13 break points to advance and will face Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi next. In Tokyo, Denmark’s Holger Rune lost 6-3 6-1 to France’s Kyrian Jacquet in his first ATP Tour appearance in nearly a year, following an Achilles tendon tear in October 2025 that dropped him out of the top 100.