Elise Mertens continued her impressive run of form Friday night in Beijing, upsetting No. 8 seed Iga Swiatek 7-6 (0), 6-3 in 1 hour and 50 minutes to reach the China Open semifinals for the first time.

Beijing: Scores | Order of play | Draws

The victory was Mertens’ first over Swiatek in three WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz meetings and sent the Belgian into her first WTA 1000 singles semifinal since 2021 and third overall. Her path has been anything but easy, as she has defeated three consecutive Grand Slam champions: Jelena Ostapenko, Coco Gauff and now Swiatek.

ANOTHER BIG WIN IN BEIJING!🤩 @elise_mertens defeats Swiatek in straight sets! #ChinaOpen https://t.co/iypSchMkip

— wta (@WTA) October 9, 2026

Mertens has now defeated three Grand Slam champions at a single WTA event for the first time in her career. The only previous tournament in which she beat multiple Major champions came during her title run in Doha in 2019, when she defeated Angelique Kerber in the semifinals and Simona Halep in the final.

“Sometimes you just grow into a tournament,” Mertens told reporters. “My second round, [Katie Volynets] already played a match and she kind of knew the circumstances. [It was] my first match, and you have to feel the ball a little bit. Then yeah, Ostapenko, she can play some good tennis, too. No easy rounds.”

With victories over Gauff and Swiatek, Mertens also became the first player to defeat multiple former China Open champions at a single edition of the tournament since Aryna Sabalenka in 2018.

Swiatek’s loss also clinched WTA Finals Indian Wells berths for Mirra Andreeva and Linda Noskova. Both players, fresh off maiden Grand Slam titles at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, respectively, will make their singles debuts at the year-end championships.

Heading to the WTA Finals Indian Wells 👏 Mirra Andreeva has confirmed her place on #TheUltimateStage! Get your tickets to see Mirra take to the court 👉 https://t.co/XSKV4xqvlZ #WTAFinals https://t.co/dKBi7WxyA2

— wta (@WTA) October 9, 2026

Qualification CONFIRMED 👊 Linda Noskova will take to #TheUltimateStage! Grab your tickets to WTA Finals Indian Wells: https://t.co/6YTn8O1CTv #WTAFinals https://t.co/NK6BGrPNBl

— wta (@WTA) October 9, 2026

Mertens near-perfect in victory

Despite the storylines surrounding the match, Mertens was the star of the day with a near-flawless performance against Swiatek.

The numbers tell the story: Mertens won 87% of her first-serve points (33 of 38), hit 24 winners against just 11 unforced errors and did not face a break point. For reference, Mertens is just the second player not to face a single break point against Swiatek in a WTA Tour main-draw match — excluding Grand Slams, team events and the Olympics — after Coco Gauff in Madrid in 2025.

But that’s not all. After trading holds throughout the opening set, in which Mertens held two break points but was unable to convert, the set was decided by a tiebreak. And while Swiatek is more often the one handing out bagels, it was Mertens who dominated the tiebreak, winning it 7-0 for a mini-bagel.

Just an edge above 🔥 @elise_mertens takes the lead against Swiatek 7-6(0) after a tight opening set! #ChinaOpen https://t.co/497UboBBhU

— wta (@WTA) October 9, 2026

Mertens is the first player to claim a tiebreak to love against Swiatek at the WTA level.

The match continued in Mertens’ favor in the second set. She finally converted a break point to take a 3-1 lead before consolidating with a love hold for 4-1. Swiatek had one last opportunity to strike back after taking a 0-30 lead in the final game, but Mertens won four consecutive points to close out the victory.

What’s next

The win leaves Mertens with a tough assignment in the semifinals, where she’ll face local star Zheng Qinwen after the former Olympic gold medalist defeated No. 6 seed Elina Svitolina 6-3, 7-6 (8) earlier Friday.

The two have met once before, a three-set encounter in Charleston last season won by Zheng.

Zheng escapes Mertens from a third-set break down in Charleston

“She’s an incredible player. She’s been a Top 10 player,” Mertens said. “Of course, [she was] unlucky with the injury, but her level is there. It’s going to be a great match. She has a home advantage, but still I’m enjoying my time here in Beijing. I’m still in singles and doubles. I’m going to give 100% again.”

Should Mertens prevail in the rematch, she would advance to her first WTA 1000 singles final. Since the format’s introduction in 2009, Mertens could become the second-oldest player to reach a maiden WTA 1000 final, younger only than Flavia Pennetta at Indian Wells in 2014.

Mertens and partner Diana Shnaider are also through to the doubles semifinals. They are scheduled to face No. 2 seeds Gabriela Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani following Mertens’ singles semifinal on Saturday.