Iga Swiatek kept her push to qualify for the WTA Finals alive, grinding out a 6-1, 6-4 win over American Ashlyn Krueger on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the Wuhan Open. Her result also capitalized on a loss by Karolina Muchova.
Krueger entered the draw as a lucky loser after losing in qualifying. She pressured Swiatek for parts of the second set and committed 44 unforced errors to the Polish player’s 27.
Swiatek will face another American in the quarterfinals. Ann Li eliminated Indonesia’s Janice Tjen 6-1, 7-6 (1) later Thursday.
Race to the WTA Finals Tightens
A title in Wuhan would let Swiatek apply pressure to Muchova in the Race to the WTA Finals rankings before the season-ending event next month in Indian Wells, California. Swiatek, who has reached the finals every year since 2021, currently sits 10th in the Race, and only the top eight qualify.
Muchova, Svitolina and Others Advance or Exit
Wimbledon finalist and sixth-seeded Muchova fell 7-5, 6-3 to 11th-seeded Diana Shnaider, who next plays former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko.
Fifth-seeded Elina Svitolina broke the serve of Chinese wild-card entry Guo Hanyu in the opening and final games, winning 6-1, 6-4 to reach the quarterfinals. Guo was coming off a breakout run that included her first career top-20 win, a first-round victory over Sorana Cirstea, despite being ranked 240th.
Svitolina, who lost in the quarterfinals at the China Open last week to eventual champion Zheng Qinwen, will next play Sonay Kartal. The British player stunned Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-0 in barely an hour.
Tenth-seeded young American Iva Jovic was upset 6-4, 6-1 by Maja Chwalinska.
Sabalenka and Pegula Fall Early
On Wednesday, top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka and second-seeded Jessica Pegula lost their second-round matches. The defeat extended a two-match losing streak for Sabalenka, who was beaten by Nikola Bartunkova in the third round at the China Open last week. She had received a bye in the opening round in Wuhan.