Priscilla Hon is expected to make her top-100 debut in the next WTA rankings release after she won her first WTA 1000-level main-draw match in China.
Beijing, China, 25 September 2025 | Ian Chadband, AAP
Priscilla Hon looks poised to become the latest Australian to join the WTA top 100 after another striking breakthrough win in Beijing.
The talented 27-year-old continued her superb year on Wednesday, winning her first round contest at the China Open with a 1-6 6-3 7-6(4) victory over experienced Swiss left-hander Viktorija Golubic.
Staring at defeat, after she went down 4-1 in a deciding tiebreak, the Queenslander reeled off six points in a row to take the win against the world No.70, who’s ranked 38 places above her in the WTA rankings.
But the victory, her first at a WTA 1000 event, now looks poised to elevate Hon into the world’s top 100 for the first time, taking her up 11 places to world No.97 in the provisional rankings.
Even if she does not advance further in Beijing, with Jelena Ostapenko presenting a formidable last-64 hurdle, there could still be five Australian women in the top 100 alongside Daria Kasatkina, Maya Joint, Kimberly Birrell and Ajla Tomljanovic when the WTA rankings are next updated.
AUSSIE WATCH: History-making group take on Beijing
Hon’s terrific year has included qualifying for Wimbledon for the first time, as well as qualifying at the US Open to reach the third round, highlighted by a victory over No.17 seed Liudmila Samsonova for the biggest win of her career, by ranking.
But it seems to be in Asia where Hon, the daughter of Chinese parents who emigrated from Hong Kong to Australia a couple of years before she was born, seems to thrive most, as nine of her 15 Tour-level wins have occurred on the continent.
In other opening round matches in Beijing, Maddison Inglis succumbed 7-5 7-6(7) in a tight contest with Polina Kudermetova, while Birrell lost 6-3 7-6(1) to Latvian Anastasija Sevastova.
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