In Madrid, Anastasia Potapova caused an upset at the Mutua Madrid Open on Friday, defeating the 8th seed Zheng Qinwen with a score of 6-4, 6-4. This victory marked the end of Potapova`s streak of eight consecutive losses against Top 10 players and was her most significant win by ranking this season.
This match was Zheng`s return to red clay since securing the singles gold medal at the Paris Olympics last summer. Prior to this encounter, Zheng held a 3-1 head-to-head record against Potapova.
Potapova arrived in Madrid having withdrawn from her Round of 16 match in Stuttgart against Aryna Sabalenka the previous week due to an unspecified injury. Despite this, she has delivered two strong performances in Madrid, first defeating Ashlyn Krueger and then showing resilience against Zheng. Potapova was efficient on break points, converting five out of nine opportunities in the 100-minute match.
After the match, Potapova commented, “It means a lot because it`s my first win against a Top 10 player in quite a long time.”
When asked about the specifics of her losing streak against Top 10 opponents, Potapova guessed “five?” Upon being corrected that the streak was eight, she responded, “Well that’s not such a bad number — it is my favorite number.”
Currently ranked No. 39 in the PIF WTA Rankings, Potapova won the Transylvania Open title in February and has improved her season record to 15 wins out of 21 matches.
Potapova reflected on her mindset, saying, “This win doesn’t feel crazy and something out of this world… only because the last matches that we played it was such a battle, always the tiebreak was involved, over three hours. Maybe this gave me the feeling that I’m actually on the same level as her.” She added, “I think it’s just the mindset that I can do it. I didn’t try to convince myself — I knew it. That was the difference. In the key moments, I was not afraid of hitting the ball because I knew deep inside that it could be my match.”
Potapova is scheduled to face No. 32 seed Sofia Kenin in the third round on Sunday. Kenin advanced by defeating Lulu Sun 6-3, 6-2.
Summary of Other Top Players` Results on Friday:
Paolini Cruises to Third Round
Sixth seed Jasmine Paolini dominated her first-ever clay-court match against Katie Boulter, securing a quick 6-1, 6-2 victory in just an hour to reach the Mutua Madrid Open third round. Although their previous four encounters on other surfaces were split evenly, Paolini clearly demonstrated her superiority on the red clay.
Paolini, a finalist at Roland Garros last year, started strong, hitting five winners to take a 2-0 lead. Boulter, who achieved her first main-draw tour-level clay win earlier in the week, managed to break back after a good rally.
However, that break was Boulter`s only significant moment. Paolini dominated the rest of the match, winning the next nine games decisively. Her powerful forehands and effective drop shots exploited Boulter`s movement limitations on clay. Paolini dropped only four points in the first five games of the second set as Boulter struggled with control, accumulating 21 unforced errors.
Leading 5-0, Paolini had a slight stumble with two double faults, allowing Boulter to win two games. But Paolini quickly regrouped and served out the match comfortably. Paolini, who reached the fourth round in Madrid last year (her best performance here), will aim to match or surpass that result in the next round against either 29th seed Magda Linette or Maria Sakkari.
Former Finalist Pegula Rolls
Third seed Jessica Pegula also advanced to the third round with a dominant 6-2, 6-2 win over Eva Lys. This match pitted the top-ranked American against the top-ranked German player according to the PIF WTA Rankings.
Madrid holds significance for Pegula, as it was the site of her first WTA 1000 final appearance in 2022, where she was runner-up to Ons Jabeur. Since that time, Pegula has won three WTA 1000 titles and reached multiple Grand Slam quarterfinals.
World No. 68 Lys, currently the top-ranked German player, had six break point opportunities in the first set, but Pegula saved five of them to maintain control of her serve. Pegula was particularly effective on return, especially against Lys` second serve, winning 77 percent of those points and hitting several return winners.
Pegula continued her strong performance in the second set, sealing the 1-hour and 12-minute victory. This win marked her 27th of the 2025 season, placing her as the tour-level match-win leader, one victory ahead of World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.
Pegula`s next opponent in the third round will be Japan`s Moyuka Uchijima. This will be their first career meeting. Uchijima advanced by defeating Ons Jabeur in three sets on Friday, preventing a potential rematch of the 2022 Madrid final between Pegula and Jabeur.
A strong performance this week could see Pegula potentially rise to the World No. 2 ranking for the first time in her career.
Jasper Hawthorne 
Dominic Ashworth