5 shocking results of the day from China Open & Japan Open ft. Tommy Paul, Barbora Krejcikova

Barbora Krejcikova and Tommy Paul were among the big names that fell by the wayside as tennis action continued at the China Open and Japan Open. Both tournaments hosted second and third-round action on Saturday.

While reigning Wimbledon champion Krejcikova fought well for three tough sets, Paul was sent packing in straight sets.

The two, however, were not the only casualties on a day filled with many upsets. Here, we have compiled the five most shocking results from the China Open and Japan Open:

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#5 Lulu Sun

Lulu Sun (Source: Getty)

Lulu Sun had her big breakthrough at the Wimbledon Championships in July, making the quarterfinals with big wins over the likes of Zheng Qinwen and Emma Raducanu.

Her ranking soared and she came into the China Open as the 29th seed. Her run, however, was cut short at the first hurdle by Ashlyn Krueger.

The American was in complete control of the duo’s second-round encounter, breaking her opponent thrice to win 6-1, 7-6(4).

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#4 Dayana Yastremska

Dayana Yastremska (Source: Getty)

Dayana Yastremska’s 2024 season has taken a complete turn after her blistering start. The Ukrainian, who started off strong by reaching her maiden Grand Slam semifinal at the Australian Open, has since struggled with form.

The youngster has faced first-round exits at every tournament since Wimbledon and she had no luck at the China Open either.

Up against Nadia Podoroska in her opener, she battled hard but it wasn’t enough. The Argentinian had all the answers to her opponent’s big groundstrokes, taking the win in three sets 7-5, 6-7(4), 6-2.

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#3 Tommy Paul

Tommy Paul (Source: Getty)

Tommy Paul was one of the few big names who survived the seed massacre in the Japan Open first round. His relief, however, was short-lived as he exited the ATP 500 tournament at the second hurdle.

Facing Tomas Machac, the American started off strong to take the opening set 6-2. His opponent, however, had other plans.

The Czech stepped up his game in the second and third sets as Paul grew increasingly frustrated. The decider went into a tie-breaker but it was the underdog who bested his more fancied opponent 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(4).

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#2 Liudmila Samsonova

Liudmila Samsonova (Source: Getty)

It’s no secret that Liudmila Samsonova enjoys playing on quick hard-courts. In fact, she had made it to the summit clash at last year’s China Open.

Her second-round exit this year thus sent shockwaves through the draw. And it was the dogged Spaniard Cristina Bucsa who staged the big upset.

The Spaniard had been playing good tennis in the lead-up but a big scalp was missing from her list of achievements. She put up a wall against her opponent’s barrage of groundstrokes and took her own chances when they came her way. Busca broke Samsonova on six occasions to seal the win 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.

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#1 Barbora Krejcikova

Barbora Krejcikova (Source: Getty)

The upset of the day, however, goes to Jaqueline Cristian, who knocked out reigning Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova to score her career’s first top-10 win.

The big-hitting Romanian trailed for most part of the match but had just enough fight to get over the finish line in this China Open clash.

After levelling the match at one-set all, Cristian came back from a break down and saved multiple match points to send Krejickova packing. The Czech was not at her best, but her opponent made sure to keep the intensity up with big serves and powerful baseline hitting. She prevailed 1-6, 6-4, 7-5.