Twice in the past three days, Zheng Qinwen has rallied from 5-0 down to take a set. On Saturday, she came back in the decider against Madison Keys. On Monday, she repeated the feat in the opening set against No. 8 seed Iga Swiatek, then closed out a 7-5, 6-3 victory to reach US Open quarterfinals for the third time.

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Zheng improved to 2-7 against Swiatek on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz, defeating her on two of the sport’s biggest stages — first in Paris at the 2024 Olympics and now at the US Open in New York. She also became the first qualifier or lucky loser to beat Swiatek at a Grand Slam; the former World No. 1 had been 15-0 in such matches.

With the win, Zheng became the first qualifier to reach the US Open women’s singles quarterfinals since Emma Raducanu in 2021, a run that famously ended with the title.

Here were the key moments — down to the minute — in Zheng’s hallmark victory over Swiatek:

0:19- After a fast start that saw Swiatek win eight of the first nine points for a 2-0 lead, she extended her dominance with a love hold for 5-0 to move within a game of claiming the opening set.

0:47- As in the third set against Keys, a straightforward hold for 5-1 served as the catalyst for Zheng’s turnaround. After winning three straight games, she made it four in a row with a break for 5-4 after saving a third Swiatek set point.

0:51- Zheng leveled at 5-all with a forehand winner — one of her nine winners in the first set and 20 overall.

0:55- Zheng broke for 6-5 after Swiatek double-faulted facing break point. After three routine holds to start, Swiatek was broken three straight times to end the set.

0:59- An ace moved Zheng within two points. A forehand winner earned her set point. And Zheng provided the exclamation point with a love hold to win her seventh straight game and seal the opener just shy of the one-hour mark.

1:39- After failing to convert an opportunity in the previous game, Zheng faced double break point serving at 3-2. Swiatek’s forehand missed wide on the second, allowing Zheng to escape. A backhand winner set up a second game point, and she held for 3-3.

1:46- Seven minutes later, Zheng earned another chance to move in front — and this time she didn’t let it slip away. She punished a second serve, firing a backhand return winner down the line to break for 4-3.

1:56- Swiatek saved a trio of match points but only delayed the inevitable. A pair of backhand errors — the last sent into the net — handed Zheng a well-deserved victory four minutes shy of two hours.

What’s next

Zheng will face the winner of No. 2 seed Elena Rybakina and No. 13 seed Naomi Osaka in the quarterfinals. Rybakina leads their head-to-head 4-1 and has won both meetings this season, in Doha and Madrid — both in three sets.

If Osaka advances, Zheng holds a 2-1 edge in that rivalry. The Olympic gold medalist has won the last two meetings, though Osaka claimed their lone hard-court matchup in San Jose in 2022.