Fran Jones, currently ranked as Britain’s No. 4 player, faced an unexpected early exit at the WTA 250 Guangzhou Open. Seeded seventh, Jones lost to Chinese wildcard Wang Xiyu in the first round, with a score of 6-4, 6-4. Despite holding a higher ranking at No. 85 compared to Wang’s No. 145, Jones couldn’t capitalize on her status as a slight favorite.
Before this match, Jones had showcased promising performances, reaching the quarter-finals in Guadalajara and the semi-finals in São Paulo in September. Following a short break, she aimed to regain momentum in China. However, the match turned out to be a closely contested affair, lasting nearly two hours, with Wang ultimately coming out on top.
Wang, a previous champion of the Guangzhou Open and a quarter-finalist at the event last year, had the support of the home crowd behind her, adding extra intensity to the match. With this victory, she advances to face Italy’s Elisabetta Cocciaretto, who defeated Diane Parry in a dramatic three-set match. Cocciaretto led by a set and a commanding 4-0 in the second set, but she had to fend off numerous challenges from Parry, ultimately winning 6-4, 6-7(7), 6-2.
In another notable upset, New Zealand’s qualifier Lulu Sun stunned the top seed Jessica Bouzas Maneiro from Spain by scoring a pair of tiebreak victories, 7-6(3), 7-6(2). Sun’s determination shone through as she came back from a precarious position, trailing 2-4 in the first set and 0-3 in the second. This match marked Sun’s fourth consecutive upset of a top seed over her recent tournaments, maintaining her current momentum.
Additionally, French qualifier Tiantsoa Sarah Rakotomanga Rajaonah also made waves by overcoming the eighth seed, Polina Kudermetova, with a score of 1-6, 6-1, 6-2. She is set to meet American Katie Volynets, who outlasted Poland’s Katarzyna Kawa in another all-qualifier matchup.
Second seed Ann Li faced a challenging matchup against Andorran lucky loser Jimenez Kasintseva, managing to secure her victory 6-4, 7-6(4), after recovering from early deficits in both sets. Li’s next opponent will be Colombia’s Camila Osorio, who easily defeated Italian player Lucia Bronzetti 6-1, 6-2.
Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva, seeded sixth and former finalist, battled well against Russian qualifier Alina Korneeva, winning with a scoreline of 7-6(2), 4-6, 6-4. In contrast, Ella Seidel of Germany delivered a commanding performance against Leolia Jeanjean, winning decisively 6-2, 6-2, and avenging an earlier defeat in Australian Open qualifying.
Hungary’s Anna Bondar advanced with a hard-fought victory over wildcard Guo Hanyu, clinching the match with a third-set tiebreak score of 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(4). Bondar’s next challenge lies in facing American qualifier Claire Liu, who marked her return to form by overcoming fourth seed Alexandra Eala from the Philippines in a comeback victory, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4.
American Caty McNally also joined the list of second-round contenders, triumphing over Slovenian qualifier Kaja Juvan in three sets. She will face Ajla Tomljanovic, who registered a straight-sets win against fifth-seeded Alicia Parks. Finally, wild-card Zhang Shuai continued her effective campaign in Guangzhou by defeating Anastasia Zakharova with a 6-4, 6-1 scoreline, reflecting her previous success against the Russian just weeks prior.
