“I’ve already outdone myself,” remarked an emotional Eva Lys, describing her feelings after earning her maiden top 10 win against former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina earlier this week at the China Open. The Lucky Loser who made headlines down under with a stellar hard court run in Melbourne, is now making heads turn in Beijing. The German WTA rising talent couldn’t contain her emotions on Tuesday and now, she has locked a showdown against two-time slam winner and American star Coco Gauff.

Lys beat McCartney Kessler in the fourth round of the China Open on the Lotus Court. Despite trailing in the first set, she showed nerves of steel and fought back to push the result into a decider. In the last set, she dominated Kessler with a final scoreline of 4-6, 6-1, 6-2. With that, Lys entered her maiden WTA 1000 quarterfinal. She had a priceless reaction to the win with tears of joy streaming down her cheeks, “I am trying to hold back my tears.”

Thanking the Chinese fans for their support throughout her campaign, she added, “It was so fun playing in front of you guys. I didn’t expect to have a lot of fans in China so really appreciate that. It was an amazing fight, I had some really tough matches.” Revealing her thoughts on making it to the QF stage of a 1000-level event, she continued, “I don’t know from where I got the strength but I just kept going and it means so much to be in my first quarterfinal.”

When asked to comment on facing Coco Gauff in the next battle, Lys had an honest confession. Being confident of herself, she replied, “I mean this is the reason I play tennis. I am happy to have the best opponents and I am happy to see where am I against them.” She added, “I am really excited for the match, I am excited I finally made it to the Center Court so I really like this court but Center will be a nice experience.”

It appears the German talent is playing her fearless A-game in Beijing. This explains the lack of nervousness before going against a formidable player like Gauff. She would want to channelize the same fearless approach against the 2025 French Open queen the way she bested a solid rival like Rybakina.

Meanwhile, Lys also ended up earning a special distinction. Not to mention, she will see a massive leap in the rankings too, come next Monday.

Eva Lys set to witness huge jump in rankings after China Open

After 2015, Eva Lys has become only the third player to make it to her maiden WTA 1000 QF at the China Open. Prior to her, Yaroslava Shvedova and Yuliia Starodubtseva achieved this feat in 2016 and 2024, respectively.

Now what’s interesting to note is her rapid rise through the rankings in the last one year. At the end of the 2024 season, she was outside of the top 100 – sitting at the 130th spot. However, Lys has delivered through her campaigns, although in bits and pieces. At the WTA 125 event, back in April, she managed to enter the last eight.

Not to mention her solid win against American star Peyton Stearns in the first round of the French Open. Her journey was short-lived after losing to teenage sensation Victoria Mboko in the second round. At the Canadian Open, Lys reached the third round before losing against six-time slam queen Iga Swiatek.

Now in Beijing, Lys is on the verge of breaking into the top 50 thanks to her impressive run. While she may be in 66th spot, the live rankings indicate the German has already made an impact. She is currently seen clinching the 54th position in the WTA rankings.

Her previous best was being World No.55. In case she reaches the semis or the summit clash, Eva Lys may have a strong chance of entering the top 50 players. Can she really make it happen by defeating Gauff? Only time will tell.