A clear trend has emerged over the last 12 days at the US Open: leading 5-0 against Zheng Qinwen is a dangerous position. On Friday, former Australian Open champion Madison Keys experienced this firsthand when she led 5-0 in the final set, only for the Olympic gold medalist to storm back and win seven consecutive games. Two days later, Zheng replicated this feat against six-time grand slam winner Iga Swiatek. After falling behind 5-0 in the opening set of their fourth-round match, Zheng stabilized her play to reel off seven straight games, eventually securing a 7-5, 6-3 victory.
This achievement is statistically unprecedented, as no player in the modern era has won seven consecutive games from a 5-0 deficit in back-to-back sets against two different grand slam champions. Reflecting on the match, Zheng noted her intense focus, stating, “In one moment, I even forgot the score in the first set at 4-5. That shows how I am focused. I guess, to come back 0-5 [again] is not lucky, that’s [what] I can say.”
For Swiatek, the loss marked a difficult turn after a season that included a title at the Canadian Open in Toronto. While the Pole had been working to regain her top form, her game faltered under pressure, characterized by a series of unforced errors. Swiatek dismissed the idea that her struggles were purely mental, explaining, “I wouldn’t say it had anything to do with mentality. It was more that I started making mistakes from easy balls and Qinwen stopped doing mistakes.”
This result represents a significant career milestone for Zheng, who previously defeated Swiatek in the 2024 Paris Olympics semi-finals. Despite her success, including a 2024 Australian Open final appearance and a career-high ranking of No. 4, the 23-year-old has faced adversity, including elbow surgery that caused her ranking to plummet to No. 160 in June. After a challenging 11-13 record earlier in 2026, Zheng entered the US Open through the qualifying draw and has now re-established herself as a major contender with seven consecutive wins in New York.
Zheng is set to face second-seeded Elena Rybakina in the quarter-finals. Rybakina moved closer to the world No. 1 ranking after a dominant 6-1, 6-4 victory over Naomi Osaka. In their 66-minute match on Louis Armstrong Stadium, Rybakina recorded 29 winners against just 17 unforced errors. Osaka, a two-time US Open champion, struggled with achilles pain and was unable to match Rybakina’s pace.
In other women’s singles action, French Open champion and fifth seed Mirra Andreeva advanced to her first US Open quarter-final by defeating Austria’s Anastasia Potapova 5-7, 6-4, 6-3. Meanwhile, the men’s draw saw 28th seed Alexander Blockx reach his first grand slam quarter-final after a 6-3, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 win over 24th seed Francisco Cerundolo. The report also notes that by any means, lead 5-0 against Zheng Qinwen, the most important takeaway from 12 days at the US Open is simple: do not. The report also notes that this was a remarkable turn of events for a variety of reasons. The report also notes that a player winning seven games in a row from 0-5 down in consecutive sets against two different opponents is almost unheard of at the highest level; doing so against two grand slam title winners has never happened before. The report also notes that here she just could not feel the ball well enough, while the Pole cited difficulties with anxiety and stress as reasons for her recent troubles. The report also notes that this is a transformative result for one of the biggest talents on the tour, most importantly. The report also notes that coming into this match, Zheng had defeated Swiatek just once in their eight meetings, but that was a devastating loss for the Pole as it came in the semi‑finals of the 2024 Paris Olympics at Roland Garros, where Swiatek had just won her third consecutive French Open. The report also notes that however, the 23-year-old underwent elbow surgery and tumbled down the rankings.
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