China Open 2015: Thursday Tennis Scores, Results and Updated Draw Schedule
Top seed Novak Djokovic motored into the quarter-finals of the China Open on Thursday, seeing off local wild card Ze Zhang in straight sets.
The world No. 1 has been in imperious form in the build-up to this tournament and made light work of a player ranked 218 places below him in the ATP rankings. Fabio Fognini and Pablo Cuevas joined Djokovic in the last eight after their wins earlier in the day.
In the women’s draw, there was a shock win for Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova over third seed Flavia Pennetta, while qualifier Bethanie Mattek-Sands also notched a surprise victory, eliminating 15th seed Roberta Vinci.
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Here’s a look at Thursday’s results so far and a recap of how the action panned out on another absorbing day in Beijing.
| Men's Singles | ||
| Round 2 | (1) Novak Djokovic bt. Ze Zhang | 6-2, 6-1 |
| Round 2 | Pablo Cuevas bt. Ivo Karlovic | 7-6 (5), 7-6 (7) |
| Round 2 | Fabio Fognini bt. (7) David Goffin | 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 |
| Round 2 | (6) John Isner bt. John Millman | 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 |
| Women's Singles | ||
| Round 3 | Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova bt. (3) Flavia Pennetta | 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 |
| Round 3 | (5) Garbine Muguruza bt. Mirjana Lucic-Baroni | 1-6, 6-2, 6-1 |
| Round 3 | (6) Ana Ivanovic bt. Svetlana Kuznetsova | 7-5, 4-6, 6-2 |
| Round 3 | Bethanie Mattek-Sands bt. (15) Roberta Vinci | 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 |
Easy Work for Djokovic
The local fans flocking to the match between Djokovic and Zhang knew they were set to see something special, whether that be another masterclass from the 10-time Grand Slam champion or the underdog raising his game to pose problems for the best player in the world.
The former of those two scenarios was always going to be the most likely, and that’s how the match panned out, as Djokovic overwhelmed the world No. 219 6-2, 6-1. From the off, Djokovic’s serve was too strong and even when Zhang got a foothold in points, he was blown away by the Serb’s stunning ground strokes.
As noted by TennisTV, early on it became apparent Novak was going to extend his exceptional record at the China Open:
Zhang did himself credit in front of the Chinese crowd, but the eventual winning scoreline was an accurate representation of the chasm in class between the two players.
Elsewhere, Cuevas continued his fine run. After nullifying second seed Tomas Berdych on Wednesday, the Uruguayan was able to get the better of another big hitter on Thursday, clinging on against the imposing Ivo Karlovic and emerging the winner in two tiebreaks, 7-6(5), 7-6(7).
Seventh seed David Goffin is out after he was beaten by Fognini in a peculiar match. Momentum swung consistently throughout this one with the Italian eventually triumphing 6-2, 2-6, 6-2.
A women’s draw that has churned out shocks all week continued to do so early on Thursday, with third seed Pennetta eliminated at the hands of world No. 32 Pavlyuchenkova.
It looked as though this was going to be a routine win for the 2015 U.S. Open champion, with Pennetta taking the first set with a swagger. But great credit must go to Pavlyuchenkova, who was durable throughout and battled back to take the next two, giving her a 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 winning margin.
Here’s the moment she sealed victory, per the WTA’s official Twitter feed:
In addition, the 15th seed Vinci was eliminated, with qualifier Mattek-Sands following Pavlyuchenkova’s example. Again, this was a thrilling three-set match, but the American upped her game in the final stanza to win 6-1, 3-6, 6-2. With some top seeds eliminated, Mattek-Sands is definitely one to watch heading into the quarters.
So is Djokovic, who is seemingly unstoppable at the moment. A rejuvenated Rafael Nadal may be the only man left in the draw capable of causing the top seed problems, and the Beijing crowd will be desperate to see both men progress so they can be treated to an illustrious final at the competition’s climax.
Full results and updated schedule for the men's draw are available via the ATP website.
Full results and updated schedule for the women's draw are available via the WTA website.
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