Chwalinska beats Kartal to clinch maiden title in Wuhan
- Last updated: October 19, 2026 | 10:06
Maja Chwalinska pulled off an impressive comeback to defeat Britain’s Sonay Kartal 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 and claim the first tour-level title of her career at the Wuhan Open on Sunday.
The Polish 16th seed trailed by a set and a break before she turned things around to become just the fourth player to win her maiden tour-level title at a WTA 1000 event.
She joins Naomi Osaka (2018 Indian Wells), Bianca Andreescu (2019 Indian Wells) and Victoria Mboko (2025 Montreal) in that exclusive club.
The 25-year-old Chwalinska started the year ranked 146 in the world and provided one of the biggest surprises of the season when she reached the French Open final as a qualifier in June.
“(This title) tastes very sweet. I feel like I still don’t realise that I won,” Chwalinska said in the post-match press conference.
“But it feels special, because after French Open, it was obviously amazing, but then I had some tough moments. I feel like people also were very rough towards me. And it took a toll on me as well.
“I’m just a human. But I kept working really hard and I’m just very grateful that my work paid off.”
The talented lefty will now rise to a career-high No.11 in the world, making her top-20 debut when the new rankings are released on Monday.
“I feel like my energy level was very low at the beginning, but also Sonay played amazing,” added Chwalinska.
“Gradually I started to play much better and much more aggressive. Also, the depth on my shots improved.
“I feel what I’m proud of is the fighting spirit that I had. I just wanted to fight for every single ball and hoped that things would click at some point.”
Davidovich Fokina stars in Shanghai Masters: Alejandro Davidovich Fokina ended Rafael Jodar’s dream run at the Shanghai Masters on Sunday, battling back to beat his fellow Spaniard 1-6 7-6(5) 6-4 and clinch the biggest title of his career.
The 25th-seeded Davidovich Fokina is set to climb 13 places to a career-high world number 13 when the rankings are released on Monday.
Jodar, playing in his first Masters 1000 final and the youngest Shanghai finalist in tournament history, made a blistering start, broke for a 2-0 lead and again to take the opening set.
Davidovich Fokina recovered from a break down in the second set and saved break points in three successive service games before edging a tight tiebreak to force a decider.
The momentum swung decisively in Davidovich Fokina’s favour when he broke the 12th-seeded Jodar twice and sealed victory in two hours and 27 minutes.
“I have a blank mind,” Davidovich Fokina said. “I don’t know what to say and I don’t know how I feel. Just a huge relief.
“After the first set I had to keep trying, keep pushing. In the tiebreak, I believed in myself again. In the third set, maybe I had a bit more fitness physically.”
It the third ATP singles title of the 27-year-old’s career, adding to his ATP 250 triumphs in Chengdu and Mallorca this season.
The first meeting between the two Spaniards pitted one of the ATP Tour’s rising talents against a player enjoying the best season of his career.
The 20-year-old Jodar, who was ranked outside the world’s top 900 little more than a year ago, strengthened his bid to qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin in his first full season on tour.
Agencies