Maja Chwalinska and Nikola Bartunkova suffered a swift exit from the Beijing doubles tournament after losing 6-2, 6-1 to top seeds Katerina Siniakova and Shuai Zhang.
The top-seeded duo of Czech Republic's Siniakova and China's Zhang dominated the second-round encounter, securing victory in 57 minutes despite falling behind early in the opening set.
Chwalinska and Bartunkova opened the match by breaking serve to take a 2-0 lead. However, Siniakova and Zhang quickly recovered, winning ten consecutive games from that point to regain control of the contest.
The top seeds broke serve three times to take the first set 6-2, despite Siniakova serving two double faults in a single game. Match statistics highlighted the dominance of Siniakova and Zhang, who landed 80 percent of their first serves and won 70 percent of total points. Chwalinska and Bartunkova won 40 percent of points on their second serve, recording four winners and eight unforced errors.
Dominant display by top seeds
The second set brought further pressure on the Polish-Czech team as they lost serve in the opening game. Chwalinska then failed to hold her serve in the subsequent game, allowing Siniakova and Zhang to take a 3-0 advantage with a double break. Chwalinska and Bartunkova eventually stopped their ten-game losing streak by holding serve, but they could not reverse the momentum as the top seeds closed out the second set 6-1.
Contrasting singles results in Beijing
The defeat concluded a mixed tournament in Beijing for both players. In the singles competition, Chwalinska exited in the second round after a 6-3, 6-1 loss to Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska. Bartunkova progressed to the quarter-finals to play Karolina Muchova, following victories over Magdalena Frech (6-2, 6-2) and Aryna Sabalenka (6-4, 6-3). In doubles, Chwalinska and Bartunkova had reached the second round by defeating American Caty McNally and Indonesia's Janice Tjen 6-2, 6-2.
The China Open in Beijing is a high-level WTA 1000 event on the women's professional tour, featuring premier hard-court competition. Siniakova is a well-known doubles competitor from the Czech Republic, while Zhang is an experienced international player representing China.
Upcoming tournaments on the Asian tour
Chwalinska will next travel to Wuhan to compete in another WTA 1000 tournament scheduled for October 12 to October 18. Her upcoming schedule also includes entries at two WTA 500 events, starting in Ningbo from October 19 to October 25 and ending in Tokyo from October 26 to November 1.
