Zhang Shuai advances to the quarterfinals, Wu Yibing falls despite high expectations! Masters sends off "Cool Kid", Medvedev shows championship form.

Three minutes a day to know all about tennis. Hello tennis fans, today is Friday, February 27, 2026. Welcome to the News Midday Report brought to you by "Tennis Home".

This morning Beijing time, the WTA 500 Merida continued with its second round of singles matches. In a key match concluding around noon, Chinese veteran Zhang Shuai continued her hot streak, defeating No. 2 seed Navarro 6-4, 6-4. She maintains a perfect 3-0 record against her opponent, ending the American's title defense run and powerfully advancing to the quarterfinals. Next, she will face another qualifier, Kasintseva, for a spot in the semifinals. Go Zhang Shuai!

Other matches: Turkey's Sonmez came back from a set down to defeat No. 3 seed American Lee 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-4, reaching the quarterfinals here for the third consecutive year; Poland's Fruchter dominated No. 7 seed Manero 6-0, 6-3 to storm into the quarterfinals; Top seed Paolini swept past Australian lucky loser Han Tianyu 6-0, 6-2 to also secure a quarterfinal berth.

Doubles court: Both pairs featuring Chinese players in action won their matches, advancing together to the semifinals. Among them, Jiang Xinyu/Bukša defeated Ninomiya/Bouzkova 6-2, 6-3; Xu Yifan/Tang Qianhui delivered a 6-4, 6-0 bagel to Dedić/Santamaria.

WTA 250 Austin: In second-round singles action, No. 4 seed Stearns easily advanced to the quarterfinals with a 6-0, 6-2 victory over Slovenia's Juvan. In another match, American Krueger defeated Russia's Zakharova 7-5, 6-3 and will face Chinese player Yuan Yue in the quarterfinals. Australian star Tomljanovic staged a comeback to defeat No. 2 seed Jovic 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, securing her second Top 20 win this season and the last quarterfinal ticket.

Let's turn to the men's tour. This morning Beijing time, the ATP 500 Acapulco singles quarterfinals commenced. Chinese player Wu Yibing, who took the court first, missed two set points in the opening set and failed to convert any of eight break points throughout the match, ultimately falling to No. 5 seed Italian rising star Cobolli 6-7(4), 1-6, unfortunately missing the semifinals.

After the match, some fans commented that Wu was "jinxed by premature praise." "He just made the quarterfinals yesterday, and people were already talking about his ranking if he reached the semis, if he won the title... The semifinals weren't even played, yet many were prematurely congratulating him on the championship! With that kind of 'jinxing,' it's no wonder he lost!"

Other matches: No. 8 seed American Tiafoe saved two match points in the deciding set tiebreak to edge past compatriot Kovacevic 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(7), barely advancing to the quarterfinals. Next, he will face Italy's Berrettini, who upset No. 4 seed Fokina in straight sets. In another match, No. 6 seed Monaco's Vassallo played excellently, ousting French "Cool Kid" Monfils 6-3, 6-3.

ATP 500 Dubai: The singles quarterfinals concluded last night Beijing time. Top seed Auger-Aliassime defeated No. 8 seed Lehečka 6-3, 7-6(2) to reach his 42nd career tour-level semifinal. He will face No. 3 seed Russian star Medvedev for a spot in the final. Medvedev needed only 56 minutes to dispatch American Brooksby 6-2, 6-1, comfortably securing his semifinal place. This tournament, Medvedev is in blazing form, winning all three matches in straight sets while conceding no more than three games per set, showing clear championship potential.

Medvedev's compatriot Rublev also performed strongly, defeating France's Lindekene 6-2, 6-4 to set up a semifinal clash with Dutchman Griekspoor, who overcame Czech rising star Menšík in three sets.

ATP 250 Santiago: In second-round singles action, the 2024 champion, Argentina's 170th-ranked Báez, defeated local favorite Garín 7-6(2), 1-6, 7-5 to reach his third tour quarterfinal of the season; Italian qualifier Pellegrino defeated Argentina's Comesana in three sets to reach his first career tour-level quarterfinal.

Finally, a guess-the-player game. The image below shows a player during a match. Without hints, can you recognize who she is?

The answer from last week's puzzle was correctly identified by fans. That's right, the person in the image is Argentina's Etcheverry, who claimed his first career title last week.

(Source: Tennis Home Author: Tèlìdúxíng)