Zheng stuns Swiatek after winning another set from 5-0 down

Qinwen Zheng, a Chinese tennis player, staged an impressive comeback to defeat Iga Swiatek, a Polish competitor, in a match that took place during the fourth round of the U.S. Open tennis championships on Monday, September 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

The 2024 Olympic gold medalist from China defeated the No. 8 seed Swiatek 7-5, 6-3, making her the first qualifier to reach the U.S. Open quarterfinals since Emma Raducanu's victory in 2021. This was Zheng's second consecutive match where she recovered from a 5-0 deficit.

Zheng's remarkable feat echoed her performance from two days prior, where she had also overcome a 5-0 deficit against Madison Keys, winning 1-6, 7-6 (3), 7-5.

"I guess to come back 0-5 yesterday is not lucky, that's all I can say," Zheng admitted after her match. Swiatek failed to capitalize on two set points when she was serving at 5-1, and Zheng managed to fend off another when Swiatek was leading 5-3.

Zheng, who has been a U.S. Open quarterfinalist in 2023 and 2024, had to go through qualifying this year after undergoing elbow surgery. Swiatek, on the other hand, had a perfect record of 7-1 against Zheng, with their last encounter being at the 2022 Olympic semifinals in Paris, where Swiatek emerged victorious.

Zheng's next opponent in the quarterfinals could either be two-time champion Naomi Osaka or No. 2 Elena Rybakina.