Swiatek Beats Jovic to Reach the Beijing Quarter-Finals

BEIJING, China — Iga Świątek beat Iva Jovic 6-1, 6-3 on Wednesday to reach the China Open quarter-finals, breaking the American’s serve twice in the last four games.

The eighth seed was in control from the start. The first set was routine. The second took close to an hour and was more work, but the result was never in doubt. Jovic, 18 and seeded 10, won only one game in the opener and three in the match.

Świątek next plays the winner of Coco Gauff and Elise Mertens. Gauff, the third seed and world No. 4, was due on court later on Wednesday. She has not been at her best in Beijing, and she is still dealing with the aftermath of Monday’s third-round win over Sun Xinran, when a replayed point over a flickering advertising board was followed by what she called an “insane” amount of racist abuse online.

Świątek beat Gauff in the 2022 French Open final. The head-to-head is 11-5 to the Pole, though Gauff has won their last four. Mertens stands between that quarter-final and a fifth meeting.

The men’s Asian swing closed on Tuesday. Novak Djokovic took a seventh Beijing title after Alex de Minaur retired, and Carlos Alcaraz retained Tokyo by beating Jiří Lehečka 7-6 (4), 6-4. The ATP 1000 in Shanghai has started. Matteo Berrettini came through a first-round match that lasted two hours and 15 minutes.

Świątek is into the last eight. Gauff still has to get there.