Sonay Kartal reached the final of the Wuhan Open last time out.
Playing just her third tournament since returning from a long-term injury, Kartal battled her way to the Wuhan Open final, where she lost to Poland’s Maja Chwalinska, 6-2, 4-6, 2-6.
Kartal impressed many, including the world number four Jessica Pegula, with her performances in Wuhan. The four-time WTA 1000 champion has now shared why she loves watching Kartal play.
Jessica Pegula says she likes Sonay Kartal’s ‘no-nonsense attitude’
“I remember watching her last year play us at BJK [Billie Jean King Cup Finals], and I was like, I kind of love watching this girl,” said Pegula during the latest episode of ‘The Player’s Box Podcast‘.
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“She just doesn’t give a f, but not in an attitude way; she just walks around and plays tennis. She’s so good, and her attitude is no-nonsense: I’m here to play, whatever. I really enjoyed watching her.
“She’s good. I feel like the conditions there in Wuhan, too, being a bit slower, definitely cater to her, because she likes to grind a bit and moves well.”
Sonay Kartal at the 2026 Wuhan Open
- 1R [WIN] vs Anhelina Kalinina, 7-5, 6-3
- 2R [WIN] vs Belinda Bencic, 6-0, 7-5
- 3R [WIN] vs Jasmine Paolini, 6-2, 6-0
- QF [WIN] vs Elina Svitolina, 6-2, 2-6, 6-4
- SF [WIN] vs Jelena Ostapenko, 7-6, 7-6
- F [LOSS] vs Maja Chwalinska, 6-2, 4-6, 2-6
Kartal beat several experienced WTA players in Wuhan, including Jasmine Paolini, Elina Svitolina, and former Grand Slam champion Jelena Ostapenko. Those wins saw her jump back into the world’s top 50, having been ranked outside the top 150 before the Wuhan Open.
WTA Rankings
| Rank | Player | Country | Points |
| 45 | Barbora Krejcikova | Czechia (6th) | 1,133 |
| 46 | Janice Tjen | Indonesia (1st) | 1,120 |
| 47 | Magdalena Frech | Poland (3rd) | 1,110 |
| 48 | Karolina Pliskova | Czechia (7th) | 1,105 |
| 49 | Sonay Kartal | Great Britain (1st) | 1,097 |
| 50 | Yuliia Starodubtseva | Ukraine (4th) | 1,090 |
| 51 | Anhelina Kalinina | Ukraine (5th) | 1,087 |
| 52 | Mayar Sherif | Egypt (1st) | 1,085 |
| 53 | Lanlana Tararudee | Thailand (1st) | 1,080 |
| 54 | Clara Tauson | Denmark (1st) | 1,074 |
Pegula’s co-host and fellow WTA star, Madison Keys, was also keen to share her thoughts on Kartal. Keys lost to Kartal at Indian Wells earlier this year, a day before she suffered a serious back injury.
“I played her at Indian Wells this year. I lost in three, and then the next round, was playing incredibly well against Rybakina; I think she was up a set and a break or something, and then she got hurt and has been out since. She was out for that long stint, but she’s very talented,” said Keys.
Kartal impressed in Wuhan, but came up short in her bid for the title. Her opponent, Chwalinska, won the biggest title of her career, four months after losing the French Open final to Mirra Andreeva. In doing so, she proved many of her doubters wrong.
Sam Querrey admits he was wrong about Maja Chwalinska
During the latest episode of the ‘Nothing Major‘ podcast, former world number 11 Sam Querrey delivered his verdict on Chwalinska’s Wuhan Open triumph.
“I’ll be the first to admit, after Roland Garros, I didn’t think we would ever see a big result from her again. She proved me wrong, probably proved a lot of people wrong, by taking this title. I know she beat Sonay Kartal in the final; that’s a dream final. She beat [Iga] Swiatek in the semi-finals; she beat some really good players along the way,” said Querrey.
“Chwalinska, it’s weird. At Roland Garros, we were watching her play, kind of rolls the forehand, she’s got the backhand, the drop shot, when you watch her play, you don’t necessarily think, she does this, this, and this really well, but she competes really well, moves the ball around the court, plays an awkward style, moves well, frustrates people. But again, I did not think we would have a result like this from her again after Roland Garros, and I was wrong.”
Winning the Wuhan Open, Chwalinska moved up to 11th in the WTA rankings. She trails world number 10 Marta Kostyuk by 889 points, but if she can carry this momentum through to the new year, she will surely fancy her chances of making a top-10 debut before her Roland Garros points drop.
Chwalinska is expected to return to WTA Tour action in Tokyo next week, with 500 ranking points up for grabs. Kartal, on the other hand, will rest for an extra week before travelling to Hong Kong.
