Badosa Wins Three-Set Battle as Zheng Leads Home Charge in Beijing

Paula Badosa came within two points of defeat before edging Daria Kasatkina 4–6, 7–6 (7), 6–4 on Thursday in the China Open first round, earning a second-round match with #24 seed Jelena Ostapenko.

It was Badosa’s second win over Kasatkina in about two months, after a US Open meeting that took her nine match points to close. Badosa, whose 2025 season ended with a thigh injury in Beijing, called the rematch an emotional roller coaster “because we were both wanting it so badly.” She added: “Now, I think slowly I’m seeing again that Paula that I want to be.”