Zhu Lin Defeats Top Seed Andreeva in Ningbo Comeback

Ningbo, China — Zhu Lin continued her strong performance at the Ningbo Open, defeating top seed Mirra Andreeva on Wednesday night. Zhu came back from a set down to win 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, setting up a quarterfinal match against Diana Shnaider.

A year ago, Zhu watched from the sidelines as she recovered from an elbow injury that sidelined her for six months. She returned to competition at this year’s Australian Open, but her form dropped, and she found herself ranked outside the top 500 by July. However, her fortunes began to change during the recent Canadian Open, where she stunned then-No. 15 Ekaterina Alexandrova.

This week in Ningbo, Zhu has shown resilience. After defeating Emma Raducanu earlier, she achieved her second consecutive victory over a top 30 player. In her match against Andreeva, Zhu faced 67 unforced errors from her opponent, including 47 in the final two sets. Despite these challenges, Zhu worked through the match that lasted 2 hours and 17 minutes.

“This win means a lot to me,” Zhu said. “I’ve worked hard to come back, and I can finally see the results.” With this win, Zhu improved her ranking to No. 170 in the PIF WTA Live Rankings.

Shnaider also demonstrated her skills, rebounding from a set down to defeat Karolina Muchova 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 in another match on the same night. This victory sets the stage for a rematch between Zhu and Shnaider, who previously faced off in the 2024 Thailand Open final.

Shnaider expressed her excitement about the upcoming match. “It’s always tough playing against Zhu, but I feel ready,” she said.

In other news from the tournament, Ajla Tomljanovic made a comeback of her own, overcoming a 5-0 deficit in the first set to defeat Zeynep Sonmez and advance to her first WTA quarterfinal since May.