Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter help make British tennis history at the China Open.

British stars have started the China Open in sensational fashion, with Sonay Kartal and Katie Boulter picking up first-round wins.

Boulter defeated Hailey Baptiste at the China Open, while Sonay Kartal beat Alycia Parks in straight sets to confirm her place in the second round.

Both women appeared for Great Britain in the Billie Jean King Cup on September 19, helping their team reach the semi-finals before they fell against the United States.

Kartal and Boulter, along with Emma Raducanu, have helped etch British tennis history at the 2025 China Open already.

Three women have made the China Open second round for the first time ever
Boulter and Kartal’s second-round confirmation at the China Open coincides with Raducanu receiving a bye to that stage of the tournament.

The three women have ensured that there will be more than one British star in the tournament for the first time in history.

The likes of Johanna Konta and Laura Robson have previously appeared at the tournament, but there’s never been this much British representation past the first round.

Boulter has been rewarded for her efforts against Baptiste with an even tougher challenge of Wimbledon and US Open finalist Amanda Anisimova.

Raducanu, meanwhile, will play her first match at the tournament against Cristina Bucșa, who knocked out Donna Vekic in the previous round.

Kartal faces 14th seed Daria Kasatkina, who also received a bye into the second round due to her WTA Tour ranking.

Only one British woman has ever reached further than the second round
The China Open has never been a particularly successful tournament for British women, although Konta broke that mould by reaching the final in 2016.

The Brit defeated Madison Keys, Zhang Shuai, Ka Plíšková, Timea Babos, and Anastasija Sevastova in Beijing, before falling to Agnieszka Radwańska in the final.

Konta’s performance at the tournament confirmed her place in the top 10 of the WTA Tour for the first time in her career.

The Brit would go on to reach a career high ranking of World No. 4 nine months later after she reached the Wimbledon semi-final.