Qiang had a strong showing in the first set, playing aggressively at the baseline to push Stephens around the court. The took the first set 6-2 with relative ease before meeting resistance from her American opponent in the second set.

"I didn't play a great match," Stephens said in the post-match press conference. "My opponent played very well. Sometimes, you have those days. Today is just not a good day," she added.

Stephens also echoed the sentiments of many other top players on the tour, stating that the Asia leg brought with it a higher degree of difficulty.

"Asia is always tough for me. Its difficult. It's the end of the year. Even though I've played 5 tournaments, I feel like I've played 25. (I'm) a little tired," Stephens remarked.

It was a great day on court for local talent, with Zhang Shuai taking out Croatian Donna Vekic 7-5, 5-7, 6-1.

No stranger to shock exits this season, 5th-seeded Briton Joanna Konta was yet another casualty falling in the evening session to Australian Ashleigh Barty 6-0, 4-6, 7-6(3).

The biggest upset of the day, and the most hard-fought on both sides, saw defending champion and 11th-seed Petra Kvitova fall to China's Peng Shuai in a nail-biter of a three-and-a-half-hour match in which each set needed a tiebreaker, 7-6 (7), 6-7 (5), 7-6 (3).

Both Kvitova and her Chinese opponent played strong tennis throughout, with both players showing flashes of sheer brilliance, and neither managing to decisively grab the momentum until the latter stages of the third set, when a visibly exhausted Kvitova showed signs of cramping.

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