The 35-year-old, ranked 595th, made history at her home tournament, the China Open, after suffering 24 straight losses over a period of more than 600 days.
Zhang achieved her first victory since January 2023 by defeating the 65th-ranked American McCartney Kessler. To advance to the third round, Zhang pulled off an incredible upset against US Open semifinalist Emma Navarro.
With 23-year-old Navarro ranked eighth in the world, that made her the lowest-ranked player to defeat a top-10 opponent in the tournament’s history.
With the exception of the Billie Jean King Cup, only one women’s player in the Open era has lost more consecutive matches than Zhang: Madeleine Pegel.
Zhang, the lowest-ranked player to have ever participated in the China Open main draw, a WTA 1000 event, defeated Anastasia Potapova of Russia, ranked 28th, 6-4 6-2, in Beijing on Friday. She will next play Greet Minnen of Belgium or Anastasia Potapova, ranked 28th.
The two-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist defeated number ten Caroline Garcia in Tokyo in 2022 in her most recent matchup against a player ranked in the top 10.
Due to the numerous ailments that have dogged Zhang’s career, she took a six-month hiatus last year before making her return in Dubai in February.
