After overcoming Anhelina Kalinina to advance to the second round of the Wuhan Open, Sonay Kartal admitted to taking a “leap into the deep end” in her comeback following a six-month layoff due to injury.
The 24-year-old British number five advanced to the last 32 at the Beijing Open earlier in the month, marking her return to WTA action after being sidelined by a spinal stress fracture.
Building on that success, she secured a 7-5 6-3 victory over Ukrainian opponent Kalinina in a match lasting one hour and 31 minutes in Wuhan.
Ranked 170th globally, Kartal is set to take on Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic, the tournament’s ninth seed, in the subsequent round.
“I’ve plunged right into the deep end by competing against the world’s top players in my initial tournaments back,” Kartal remarked.
“While it’s undoubtedly demanding, I’m pleased with the standard of play I’ve delivered. Reaching my previous form remains a work in progress, but I feel content, optimistic, and in good spirits.”
Her competitive comeback began last month representing Great Britain in the Billie Jean King Cup, where she suffered a tight defeat against world number 26 Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic.
In Beijing, Kartal registered victories against Spanish player Andrea Lazaro Garcia and local favorite Wang Xinyu, prior to being eliminated by Armenia’s Alina Charaeva.
During her clash with the 48th-ranked Kalinina, Kartal recorded four aces and converted 23 out of 30 points on her successful first serves.
She earned her place in the round of 32 on her third match point after Kalinina successfully fended off the previous two.
Elsewhere, Zheng Qinwen pulled out of her home event in Wuhan shortly after achieving a historical milestone as the first Chinese athlete to claim the China Open title.
Zheng announced her decision to skip the event via a statement, explaining that an “exhausting sequence of fixtures” had left her “body feeling deeply fatigued.”
Following elbow surgery last year, Zheng endured a difficult 12-month stretch with her health and performance before turning her season around with the championship win in Beijing.
