Mirra Andreeva sets up Leylah Fernandez quarter-final showdown as reigning champion receives walkover
WTA
The Singapore Tennis Open continues with the big names
entering the fray. The main one was Mirra Andreeva, who headlined the day with a
comfortable win, while the reigning champion, Elise Mertens, breezed through without
even hitting a ball.
The Belgian was supposed to play against Barbora Krejcikova
in the second round. That contest would never occur. Just before the tie,
Krejcikova would withdraw with a back injury.
The Czech had played in a tense three-set thriller the day
before, where she saved two match points. However, she did take a medical timeout
during the contest, and that problem has seemed to prevent her from continuing
her campaign in Southeast Asia. That means the No.4 seed advances despite not
yet featuring on court.
Andreeva dazzles in commanding display
After the likes of Jessica Pegula and Amanda Anisimova
withdrew, Andreeva is the big favourite to take this title. She had little
issue in disposing of Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-2, 6-2.
The Russian is targeting a fourth WTA title of 2026 to add
to the Roland Garros triumph. This time last year, she was struggling for form
which saw her cruelly miss out on a WTA Finals debut. Determined not to make
the same mistake, she features in Singapore and has sent out a statement of
intent.
She exploded out of the blocks, getting two breaks en route
to a 4-1 lead. Sasnovich did respond by reducing the deficit to one break, but
that was instantly corrected by Andreeva who served it out with ease to take a
one-set lead.
Andreeva again broke to start the set, but this time
Sasnovich responded instantly, keeping tabs with the World No.5. It was very
brief. Andreeva snuck back ahead before extending her advantage to lead 5-2.
She converted a first match point and waltzed into the quarter-final.
Mirra Andreeva dropped just four games in a dominant victory
Chwalinska and Fernandez reach quarter-finals in Singapore
From one Roland Garros finalist to another, Maja Chwalinska
has struggled for form since that magical run. In fact, this is the first time
since Paris that she has won more than one singles match in the same tournament.
This was done in some style, battering a hapless Oleksandra Oliynykova 6-0,
6-1.
Just 59 minutes it took for the Pole to prevail with not
much of a challenge coming back at her. The first set took 25 minutes, in which
Chwalinska did not face a break point. Oliynykova then seemed to be starting a
fight back with a break of serve to commence the second set, but that was not
the case. Chwalinska converted three from three break points and dropped just
eight points in the rest of the match, again winning six consecutive games.
Culminating the action was Leylah Fernandez who tackled
Alycia Parks. There was little problem for the former US Open finalist who kept her opponent at arm's length, prevailing 6-4, 6-3.
Read also
The first set was a very one-sided affair. After Parks
levelled at 30-all after holding serve, she would not win another point for
some time. In fact, the Canadian won 14 points on the bounce, breaking twice to
go 4-1 up. This awful period was almost made up for as Parks won three games in
a row to close the gap to 5-4. Fernandez had one more chance to serve it out,
and to her relief did so to get the first set under her belt.
A trio of breaks went the way of Fernandez, and soon enough
she had two match points against the American’s serve. A third one came along,
and Fernandez stopped faffing around to set up a mouth-watering tie against
Andreeva.
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
claps 0visitors 0
Just In
Popular News
Latest Comments
- A healthy Qinwen may be hard to stop next season. She was already scaring her opponents before her medical leave(s). Unfortunately, Zheng insisted on singing again. On the positive side -- Mirra did not sing!! ;~}
mandoist11-10-2026 - Where is it written that athletes, entertainers... People in general... are mandated to keep looking at -- or even using [anti]Social Media? Public & private figures consistently complain and reveal their concerns about negativity and violence thrown at them -- yet they insist on participating. Avoid it, don't use it, don't read it. It's okay to occasionally look up at the World instead beating your eyes & thumbs to death on The Inventions out there.mandoist11-10-2026
- great articlestennisseserver07-10-2026
- Medvedev was leading Djokovic 7-5, 3-5 when an attempted return..' NO you ignorants, Djokovic was leading .weiss05-10-2026
- No more bullshit "Wildcards" to these two. Qualify like everyone else -- there will be cameras there, too. Time to scream... WTF ????!!!!mandoist29-09-2026
- Let's not BS the general public -- Sabalenka started showing cracks in her game last season. Her losses and near-losses started at about the same time she began being distracted by Fame (constant Selfies, making TV commercials, magazine shoots, endless Social Media nonsense, etc., etc.) One would think even Saba could recognize the parallels with others who failed before her -- Raducanu, Giorgi, Bouchard to name a few.mandoist25-09-2026
- Gross!! Hey Raducanu, Giorgi, and Bouchard -- reserve a seat at your Social Media Selfie table for Saba + Naomi. They're heading in your direction soon enough.mandoist24-09-2026
- And then these same players will complain about how lengthy their season’s were and need more time-off. I’m all for more tennis but the amount of tennis we get now is actually kind of crazy! We all need a break, especially the players.DaveyWavey23-09-2026
- You should do a comparison article for "different kinds of justice" the courts decide for tennis players. I can think of at least three players who received very small bans of a few months, however Tara Moore has been fighting for her literal survival the past few years. It seems odd considering she is not a "name" player, unlike the other cases.DaveyWavey22-09-2026
- PRIZE MONEY & POINTS Winner - $185,500 Finalist - $114,500 Semi-Finalist - $66,003 Quarter-Finalist - $35,000 Round of 16 - $18,045 Round of 32 - $13,005 Winner - 500 Finalist - 325 Semi-Finalist - 195 Quarter-Finalist - 108 Round of 16 - 60 Round of 32 - 1DaveyWavey20-09-2026
Loading