For the second time in the span of six weeks on Wednesday at the China Open, Zheng Qinwen lost the first set against Amanda Anisimova -- but just as she did in the first round of the US Open in August, the Olympic gold medalist rallied for victory. 

Beijing: Scores | Order of Play | Draws

Zheng's 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 win over Anisimova, the No.34 seed at the WTA 1000 event, puts her into the last eight in Beijing for the first time, and completes the quarterfinal field. The No.5 seed is through to her eighth quarterfinal of the season, where she will face 17-year-old No.17 seed Mirra Andreeva.

How the match was won: The big-hitting American blitzed the Olympic champion in the first set of their first-round match at the US Open -- a match Zheng eventually won 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 -- and started in similarly strong fashion in the final Round of 16 match on Beijing's Diamond Court by winning the first set's final three games.

Though Zheng hit twice as many winners as Anisimova in the first set -- 12 to six -- the American's clean striking, particularly off the backhand side, forced Zheng into twice as many mistakes as Anisimova. On set point, though, it was the No.34 seed's quick thinking that won out: She showcased soft hands at the net to put away an angled reply from a Zheng return that awkwardly came off the net

But Anisimova could do little to quell the Olympic champion's momentum once she gained it early in the second set. Zheng saved a break point in the first game, and broke Anisimova's for the first time in the second, to take a lead she'd never relinquish for the duration of what was a 2 hour, 22-minute affair in total. 

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Anisimova received a medical timeout in between the second and third sets, but continued to compete hard. Four of the eight games in the final frame stretched past deuce, but crucially, three of them went to Zheng. Those included a break of serve in the fifth game that put her up 4-1 (after Anisimova led 40-15), and the match's final game, where Zheng saved three break points before converting her fourth match point.

Andreeva gets her Olympic revenge

Andreeva booked a spot in her third career WTA 1000 quarterfinal earlier on Wednesday, defeating No.31 seed Magda Linette, 6-1, 6-3. After dropping the first set in each of her first two matches, the No.17 seed was dominant against Linette in 1 hour and 13 minutes -- continuing to better the third-round result she recorded last year in her tournament debut.

She was also motivated, in part, by a 6-3, 6-4 loss to the Pole at the Paris Olympics, and called the first set the best that she's played this week so far.

"I knew that it would be hard for me mentally, because I lost to her ... pretty easy in our last match," Andreeva said afterwards. "I was like, 'This is my chance; I've gotta get my revenge.'"

"I've had a little pressure on me because I've had to defend my points," she continued. "Of course, I was a bit nervous, but I just said to myself that I would separate each match ... focus on the game and each point. I'm very glad that I've just managed to play and not think about all this."

Andreeva, who tied Maria Sharapova in being the joint-youngest quarterfinalist in the history of the China Open with her win against Linette, has been a crowd favorite throughout her week in Beijing so far -- but recognizes that she won't have the luxury of being such against Zheng, whom she'd never faced.

"When I've played here, all of my matches, I felt like they were rooting for me ... probably, everyone will be cheering for her," Andreeva said. "I've had those situations before already, especially in France [at Roland Garros against Varvara Gracheva] ... so that was hard, but I know how to deal with it. I know how to play with it, I know what to do if something goes wrong.

"I will just talk to my coach about tactics, and we'll see, maybe some of the people will be cheering for me. Maybe one of two, I will be hoping for it!"