Arthur Gea's Beijing run ends in Hurkacz defeat

Arthur Gea’s run in Beijing is over, with the Frenchman missing out on a place in the quarter-finals after losing to Hubert Hurkacz. The defeat ends another strong tournament for the 21-year-old, who had again progressed through qualifying before reaching the main draw.

Hurkacz won their first meeting 7-6, 6-7, 6-2. The Polish player took the opening set in a tiebreak, but Gea responded by winning the second-set decider 7-5. The match remained level at 2-2 in the final set before Gea’s performance dipped sharply, allowing Hurkacz to take control and secure the victory.

Gea had opened his campaign with a win over China’s Zhizhen Zhang. The result follows his run to the last 16 at the US Open earlier this month and confirms the progress made by a player who began the season ranked 241st in the world. He was 58th on Monday and is moving closer to the top 50.

Hurkacz, ranked 41st, continued the form that carried him to the Chengdu final the previous week. The former world No. 6, who won his first ATP title at Los Cabos in August, will face Karen Khachanov in Beijing for a place in the semi-finals.