Rybakina loses stunner in her debut as No. 1

By the Editorial Team · Sunday, October 4, 2026

Elena Rybakina, the world No. 1 and U.S. Open champion, was upset in her opening match at the China Open by No. 118-ranked Alina Charaeva, marking a rare early exit for a top-ranked player. Charaeva became the lowest-ranked player ever to overcome a world No. 1 after staging a comeback, while the tournament continues with strong performances from leading men’s and women’s contenders.

Elena Rybakina, the newly crowned world No. 1 and recent U.S. Open champion, was defeated in a surprising upset during her opening match at the China Open in Beijing on Saturday. The Kazakhstani player lost to No. 118-ranked Alina Charaeva of Armenia in three sets, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3. This marked only the second time in WTA history that a player lost her opening match as the top-ranked woman, the first being Naomi Osaka in 2019.

Charaeva, who is 24 years old and has played just 17 main-draw WTA matches, staged a comeback after dropping the first set. She held her composure in the final set, winning 20 out of 26 service points and breaking Rybakina’s serve five times during the match. The decisive break came when Charaeva moved ahead 4-2 in the third set. Charaeva became the ninth player ranked outside the top 100 to defeat a world No. 1 since the WTA rankings began in 1975, and the lowest-ranked player ever to complete a comeback victory over a top-ranked opponent according to OptaAce statistics.

Reflecting on the match, Charaeva said she focused on maintaining mental resilience and belief throughout. Rybakina acknowledged the difficulty she faced, citing exhaustion after a demanding U.S. Open campaign and limited recovery time. “There was a lot going on after the U.S. Open victory,” Rybakina said. “I didn’t get a lot of chances to sleep and recover. Congratulations to Alina. She played a very good match, and I felt my foot a little bit at the end of the match. So it’s time to rest a little bit and see what is next in the upcoming weeks.”

In other China Open results, top-seeded men’s player and U.S. Open champion Alexander Zverev advanced to the quarterfinals by defeating wild card Shang Juncheng 6-0, 6-3. Zverev will face sixth-seeded Novak Djokovic, a six-time champion in Beijing who remains undefeated at the tournament with a 31-0 record. Third seed Daniil Medvedev also moved into the next round, overcoming Jan-Lennard Struff 6-4, 6-3. Australian Alex de Minaur and Russian Andrey Rublev both claimed three-set victories to reach the quarterfinals and will meet each other.

On the women’s side, Coco Gauff, who lost to Rybakina in the U.S. Open semifinals, recorded her first win since that tournament by defeating Camila Osorio 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 6-2. Several seeded players advanced to the third round, including Elina Svitolina, Iga Swiatek, and Belinda Bencic. Meanwhile, China’s 16-year-old Xinran Sun registered an upset over No. 27 Cristina Busca 6-4, 7-5 and will face Gauff in the third round.

The tournament continues to produce a mix of expected outcomes and surprising results, highlighting the competitive depth in both men’s and women’s fields as the tennis season progresses.

This article was reported by synthesizing coverage from multiple independent news outlets to present a balanced, unbiased account. Read about our editorial standards. Spotted an error? Let us know.