Iga Swiatek represented the biggest upset of the round yesterday, as she fell to Qinwen Zheng in straight sets.
A loss such as this can be excused against a player of her opponent’s quality. Although injuries have curtailed her career of late, this Chinese superstar is an Olympic gold medallist and former Grand Slam finalist.
However, it’s the way in which the six-time Grand Slam champion lost to Zheng that will really frustrate her and her fans, having led in the first set by a 5-0 margin, yet still somehow losing it.
Tim Henman was in close proximity to this match and witnessed first-hand Iga Swiatek’s collapse.
He tried to explain what had happened in the post-match, but even he admitted he was stunned, and almost confused by what he had seen.
Tim Henman analyses Iga Swiatek’s shock loss at the US Open
Speaking live on Sky Sports straight after the result, Henman admitted he couldn’t believe what he was witnessing as Swiatek slumped to her straight-sets defeat.
He claimed: “You look at Swiatek with 17 winners and 28 unforced errors. She was erratic from the back of the court.
Tell us your wildest US Open prediction!
“When I see her play like that, Swiatek, it always surprises me. She has got that type of game where she can play with spin and margin for error and hit the ball hard but not make those unforced errors.
“It was a good performance from Zheng, but we saw Swiatek leaving the court, and she looked very disappointed.
“She had her chances, but she did not play well enough.”
Then, expanding on the erratic nature of Swiatek, Henman added: “I think what was interesting is the shadow. The shadow across the court at this time on Ashe is difficult.
“It is very difficult to focus on the ball when it is in bright sunshine and it comes into the shade, with the shadow retreating to the baseline.”
Swiatek has since had a spiky exchange with one reporter during her post-match press conference. It’s clear that this loss has stung.
Qinwen Zheng following in Emma Raducanu’s footsteps
Zheng was jubilant in her on-court interview after the match, and with good reason.
After all, she has endured so many hardships over the past year and beyond, and it’s so refreshing to see her finally enjoy a good run at a major event at last. She has earned this.
Where will Iga Swiatek be ranked at the end of 2026?
What makes it even more compelling is the fact that she went through the US Open qualifying to get here as well.
Willing to swallow her pride and accept where her career currently is, Zheng has now won seven straight matches and will face Elena Rybakina next in the quarter-finals.
The last qualifier to reach this stage of the women’s draw at the US Open was Emma Raducanu, who went on to take the title in 2021.
