Elena Rybakina suffered a stunning defeat to world No 118 Alina Charaeva in her first match since becoming world No 1 at the China Open on Saturday.
Rybakina reached the top of the world rankings after winning the US Open last month - her second Grand Slam title of 2026 - but was brought crashing back down to earth with a 6-3 4-6 3-6 defeat to Alina Charaeva at the China Open on Saturday afternoon.
Armenia's Charaeva had never faced a top-20 player before this match, but stunned the top seed to set up a round-of-32 clash with Britain's Sonay Kartal.
"I don't have words," said Charaeva after the victory of her life. "This is incredible. Of course Elena is an amazing player who is doing really good this season winning two Grand Slams. For me it's just a dream come true. I just tried to stay hard mentally and keep believing I could turn around the game to my side. Never stop believing, I guess!"
Elsewhere, US Open champion Alexander Zverev set up a blockbuster quarter-final tie against Novak Djokovic after the German No 1 seed brushed past wildcard Juncheng Shang 6-0 6-3.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing