Elise Mertens broke through against Coco Gauff at last, producing a composed 6-3, 6-3 fourth-round win to end a five-match losing streak in their rivalry and reach the China Open quarterfinals in Beijing for the first time.
Key takeaways
- The 13th-seeded Belgian defeated defending champion and third seed Gauff in straight sets.
- Mertens closed the match by taking 10 of the final 11 points behind her serve, finishing with an ace.
- Gauff committed 34 unforced errors, including eight double faults.
- The victory was Mertens’ 10th career win over a Top 5 opponent and her second this season.
- Mertens will face 2023 Beijing champion Iga Swiatek, the No. 8 seed, in the quarterfinals.
Mertens finally turns the rivalry around
Before Wednesday’s meeting, Gauff had won all five previous contests with Mertens, but the Belgian had already shown she could trouble the American. At Eastbourne in 2021, Mertens was ahead 6-0, 3-1 before Gauff recovered for a 0-6, 7-6(4), 7-5 victory. Their Dubai clash eight months ago was equally painful for Mertens, who held three match points before Gauff escaped 2-6, 7-6(9), 6-3.
There was no late reversal this time. Mertens maintained control through the closing stages, while Gauff struggled to find timing and rhythm. Four of the American’s double faults arrived in the final game of the opening set as Mertens secured the break that gave her the set.
Gauff later told her courtside team that she had “no energy” and felt close to passing out while trailing 4-1 in the second set. Mertens did not let the opening slip, serving out the upset with her second ace of the match.
The victory carried a personal dedication for Mertens. Her coach and boyfriend, Christopher Heyman, celebrates his birthday on Thursday.
“This win is for him,” Mertens said during her on-court interview.
Swiatek awaits in the Beijing quarterfinals
Mertens’ result marked her second Top 5 scalp of 2026, following her third-round Wimbledon win over Elena Rybakina. It is also the third season in which she has beaten more than one player from the Top 5.
In 2018, she defeated Elina Svitolina at the Australian Open and Sloane Stephens in Cincinnati. In 2021, she beat Svitolina at the Gippsland Trophy in Melbourne before overcoming Simona Halep in Madrid.
The Beijing run is Mertens’ second quarterfinal at WTA 1000 level or higher this year, after her Wimbledon last-eight appearance. A place in the semifinals would be her first at that tier since Dubai in 2021.
Her next test is another former China Open champion: Swiatek, who lifted the Beijing title in 2023. Mertens has yet to beat the Pole in two meetings, but arrives in the last eight having removed the biggest head-to-head obstacle of her tournament campaign.
