Sonay Kartal has rediscovered her best tennis with two statement victories capped by a dominant 6-2, 6-0 win against Jasmine Paolini at the Wuhan Open.

Playing for a place in the quarter-finals in Wuhan, Kartal’s composure and heavy top-spin left Paolini scrambling for answers as her unforced error count hit 24 in a contest that lasted just over an hour.

Kartal’s ruthlessness was evident as she dispatched ninth seed Belinda Bencic in a 6-0, 7-5 upset in the previous round, but against a player of similar stature and style, it was clear she had rediscovered the form that saw her reach the fourth round of Wimbledon last year.

“I knew from the start that in every point I was going to have to be solid and not let up concentration,” Kartal said on court after victory. “From my side I think it was a pretty flawless performance so [I’m] very happy to get through that one.”

It has been a difficult year for Kartal. After reaching the fourth round of Indian Wells in March, she sustained a back stress fracture and spent the next six months in rehabilitation, missing three of the four grand slams, including Wimbledon.

During that time, her ranking has slipped from world No 54 to 129. She was able to return to the WTA Tour at the Beijing Open earlier this month, after featuring for Great Britain at the Billie Jean King Cup in September. To enter the 1000 event in Wuhan, Kartal used a protected ranking offered to players who are absent for more than six months. Otherwise, she would have had to go through qualifying.

It was during the Asian swing last year that Kartal recorded the biggest win of her career by ranking when she beat 2026 French Open champion Mirra Andreeva in a thrilling three-set battle. With her trademark ice-cold temperament, she is no different a year later, with the win against Bencic now sitting second on that list in terms of victories by rankings.

The signs Kartal is back to her best

The way she dismantled two top players in successive rounds showed just how far Kartal, 24, has come in her young career.

Unlike other injuries, a back stress fracture does not have the same defined timeline for recovery, nor is it possible to scan the back at regular intervals to determine what progress has been made.

The only signs of any lingering issues were a compression sleeve on her right arm as she delivered heavy top-spin shots, which forced Paolini into making errors, although the Italian was far below the level she had shown in previous rounds.

“I trusted that I would be able to get my level back, I just didn’t know how quickly,” Kartal said after beating Bencic. “I did a lot of things right, but I still think there’s a long way to go. I can produce the level, but can I sustain it? I think that’s going to be the hardest challenge. I’m happy to be back, I’m feeling good.”

When she first caught attention with a run to the third round of Wimbledon in 2024, and followed it up with reaching the fourth round in 2025, Kartal had a slightly stunted service action. Instead of the racket going all the way behind her in a smooth motion, she almost started in a chopper-like stance but it has moved to the full serve.

What Kartal lacks in stature – she is listed at a generous 163cm (5ft 4in) – she makes up for in power and agility, covering the court with ease while also maintaining an ideal length and weight of shot from the baseline.

Kartal will take on Elina Svitolina, world No 6, for a place in the semi-finals on Friday.