Sakkari has also lacked consistency, but Svitolina’s recent fitness struggles could give the Greek an opportunity to challenge her.
Sakkari Bids To Rediscover Her Winning Touch In Beijing
- Sakkari has not registered back-to-back main-draw wins in China since 2023.
- She has a 2–6 record against Top 10 players this year.
- Svitolina has a 32–8 record against players outside the Top 20 in 2026.
- She has reached the quarterfinals in three of her last four appearances in Beijing.
HTH - Elina Svitolina leads 3-2
| Year | Tournament | Round | Surface | Winner | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Madrid WTA | R16 | Clay | Elina Svitolina | 6-3, 6-4 |
| 2021 | Olympics - Tokyo | R16 | Hard | Elina Svitolina | 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 |
| 2020 | Ostrava WTA | R16 | Hard | Maria Sakkari | 6-3, 6-3 |
| 2019 | San Jose WTA | QF | Hard | Maria Sakkari | 1-6, 7-6(3), 6-3 |
| 2019 | Wimbledon | 3R | Grass | Elina Svitolina | 6-3, 6-7(1), 6-2 |
Sakkari Seeks A Better Asian Swing This Year
Maria Sakkari comfortably handled Storm Hunter in the opening round in Beijing, defeating her in straight sets to reach the third round, 6-2, 6-2. She lost her serve twice but broke her opponent six times during the match.
The Greek started her Asian swing last week in Singapore, where she had a chance to progress deep but lost to Talia Gibson in straight sets in the quarterfinals. She will now look to build further momentum this week.
She has played 18 events this year and registered multiple main-draw wins only five times, including a semifinal appearance in Doha, a final run in Athens, and third-round appearances at Wimbledon and the French Open. Despite those results, she has been largely inconsistent this season.
Last year, she played three events during this swing but won only one match across the three tournaments combined. She will be looking for a better result this year.
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Country | Greece |
| Age | Born 25 July 1995 |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| World Ranking | No. 33 |
| Career High | No. 3 (21 March 2022) |
| Elo Ranking | No. 40 |
| Tour-Level Titles | 2 |
Svitolina Looks To Rebuild Momentum After Recent Setbacks
Elina Svitolina defeated Katerina Siniakova from a set down to reach the third round in Beijing, winning 1-6, 6-4, 6-2. After losing the first set, she raised her level significantly and saved six of the eight break points she faced in the second set before dominating the decider.
The Ukrainian has looked vulnerable in recent weeks after suffering an ankle injury in Cincinnati and making a third-round exit at the US Open. She also lost two of her three matches at the Billie Jean King Cup last week before arriving this week.
Despite those recent setbacks, she has enjoyed an impressive season so far, posting 12 quarterfinal-or-better results, including the title in Rome, the final in Dubai, and semifinal appearances at the Australian Open, Indian Wells and Toronto.
She has cleared the opening-round hurdle in four of her seven appearances here in Beijing and converted three of those runs into quarterfinal appearances, most recently in 2019.
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Country | Ukraine |
| Age | Born 12 September 1994 |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| World Ranking | No. 7 |
| Career High | No. 3 (11 September 2017) |
| Elo Ranking | No. 8 |
| Tour-Level Titles | 20 |