Even though she was defeated, she made history
Making History Despite Defeat
Jimu News reporter Chen Lingyan
Photojournalist Zou Bin
Translator Zhang Tong, Chen Liu, Fang Lihua (Hubei University)
Jimu News reporter: Chen Lingyan
Photographer: Zou Bin
Translators: Zhang Tong, Chen Liu and Fang Lihua (Hubei University)
On October 13, in the women’s singles final of the Wuhan Tennis Open, Sabalenka defeated Zheng Qinwen 2:1 and won her third Wuhan Open championship. She also received a bonus of US$525,000 and 1,000 points.
On October 13, Aryna Sabalenka defeated Zheng Qinwen 2-1, clinching her third title at the 2024 WTA Wuhan Open,along with a prize of $525,000 and 1,000 ranking points.
This is Sabalenka’s fourth crown this season, her 17th career crown, and her seventh WTA1000 title. Zheng Qinwen, who won the runner-up, still made history and became the first Chinese player to stand on the Wuhan Open singles podium.
Following the match, Sabalenka welcomed her fourth title of the season, 17th title of her career and seventh win at a WTA 1000 event. Zheng Qinwen, the runner-up, equallymade history by becoming the first Chinese player to win an award inthe Singles matches at the Wuhan Open.
On the evening of October 13, in the women’s singles final of the 2024 WTA Wuhan Tennis Open, Belarusian Sabalenka (right) defeated Chinese player Zheng Qinwen (left) 2-1 and won the championship. Zheng Qinwen, who won the runner-up, also made history. She was the first Chinese player to stand on the singles podium in the history of the Wuhan Open. 【On the evening of October 13th, Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka (R) defeated Zheng Qinwen of China (L) 2-1, reigning supreme at the Women’s Singles Final during the 2024 WTA Wuhan Open. Zheng Qinwen, the runner-up, also made tournament history as the first Chinese player to win an award in the Singles matches at the Wuhan Open.】
“Tiger Girl” is fierce
Fierce “Tiger Girl”
Sabalenka is currently ranked No. 2 in the world and is known as the “Queen of Hard Court”. She is the first player in the history of Wuhan Open to reach the singles finals three times. Zheng Qinwen is ranked 7th in the world. This year she played in the main draw of the Wuhan Open for the first time and became the first Chinese player to reach the singles final in the history of the tournament. The two have met three times before, in this year’s Australian Open final, last year’s and this year’s US Open quarter-finals, with Sabalenka winning both times. This is the first time the two sides have met outside of a Grand Slam.
Ranked world No.2 and dubbed the “Queen of Concrete” for her winning streaks in hard-court major titles,Sabalenka is the first player to make the singles finals three times in the history of the Wuhan Open. Zheng Qinwen, ranked seventh in the world, became the first Chinese player at a singles final when she first debuted inthe main draw of the Wuhan Open. The two have previously faced each other on three occasions, in the AustralianOpen final this year and in the quarter finalsof the US Open last year and this year, during which Sabalenka reigned all three times.This was the pairs’ first encounter during amatchbesides the Grand Slam.
After the game started, Sabalenka’s characteristics of strong strength, fast ball speed and tricky angles were fully revealed, showing her true qualities as a “tiger girl”. In the first set, she took the lead in breaking serve and steadily controlled the rhythm, winning 6:3.
Once the match began, Sabalenka’s great power, fastspeed, and sharp angles were on full display, living up to her image as “tiger girl”. In the opening set, she broke serve firstand maintained a steady pace,takingthefirstset6-3.
The statistics of the first set can clearly show the difference in offensive firepower between the two sides. The first-serve success rates of the two are close, but in terms of second-serve scoring rate, Zheng Qinwen’s is 40%, while Sabalenka’s is as high as 83%.
An analysis of the first set reveals the difference in offensive firepower between the duo. Both had close success rates in the firstserve, yet during the secondserve, Zheng Qinwen scored at 40%while Sabalenka was up to a whooping 83%.
“Queen” is tenacious
Tenacious“Queen Wen”
Facing the opponent’s strong performance, Zheng Qinwen, as she said before the game, tried to stabilize her emotions before implementing her tactics.
Inthe face of a strong opponent, Zheng Qinwen, as she highlighted prior tothe game,tried to stay calm before executing her game plan.
Serve is Zheng Qinwen’s great weapon. This season, she leads all WTA women’s players in the number of aces. In the match against Sabalenka, she served harder and hit some fast and hard serves, but she also paid the price of double faults.
Serving is Zheng’s strong suit, a key to herlead in ACE numbers among all WTA female players this season. During her battle against Sabalenka, she ramped up her game hitting some quick and fierce serves, which came at the price of double faults.
The same situation also occurs in the process of receiving the serve. Facing an opponent like Sabalenka, being conservative is obviously useless. You can only try every means to fight to find a scoring opportunity.
Zheng encountered the same issue whilereceivingthe serve, when she played roughin an attempt to draw even. In the face of the ferocious Sabalenka, conservativeplay was sure to lead her nowhere. She can only try her best to find scoring opportunities.
After the start of the second set, Zheng Qinwen took the lead in serving, and she stirred up the atmosphere with her continuous beautiful attacks. When she was broken by Sabalenka, she did not lose her position, but quickly broke back to hold on to the score. When Sabalenka’s condition fluctuated, Zheng Qinwen seized the opportunity and continuously played high-quality shots to regain the victory at 7:5.
In the second set, Zhengserved first and riled up the crowd with a series of impressive shots.After a break by Sabalenka, Zheng did not panic and instead clawed one break back herself, giving her a firm footing in the game.Zhengalso capitalized onSabalenka’s waning performance, hittinghigh-quality shotsbefore takingthe set 7-5.
ultimate showdown
The Ultimate Duel
As the game entered the final set, the atmosphere became even more heated and the cheers from the audience were deafening. Zheng Qinwen, who took the lead in serving, failed to stabilize the situation under Sabalenka’s tight defense and was broken in two consecutive service games. Sabalenka further increased her intensity and established a 3:0 advantage.
As the matchushered in its decisive set, excitement in the crowd soared, a deafening roar of cheers ringing from the bleachers.Serving first, Zheng Qinwen struggled with leveling the scoresunder Sabalenka’s tight defense, asher two consecutive serveswerebroken. Sabalenka ramped up the pressure gaininga 3:0 advantage.
Zheng Qinwen adjusted his state, played harder and completed the break. However, with her rich competition experience and comprehensive technical ability, Sabalenka firmly held the advantage and won the game with 6:3.
Zheng gathered herself and fought harder, retaliating witha breakagainst her opponent.However, Sabalenka, withhertop notch skills and unmatched experience soon gained the upper hand, takinganother set 6:3 to win the match.
Although she failed to win, Zheng Qinwen’s progress is still visible to the naked eye, and the gap between her and Sabalenka continues to narrow. At the age of 22, she became the first Chinese player to stand on the singles podium at the Wuhan Open, which also raised public attention to tennis to a new level.
Despite the loss, Zheng’s progress is still remarkable, as she narrows the gap between her andSabalenka. At the age of 22, she became the first Chinese player to win an award inthe Singles matches at the Wuhan Open, and even raised public interest intennis to a new height.
thanks fans
Thanks to the Fans
At the award ceremony, Zheng Qinwen said: “I am very happy to enter the Wuhan Open finals. I played my best and hope to do better next time.”
At the award ceremony, Zheng Qinwen said: “I am very happy to reach the finalsof the Wuhan Open. I played to my best abilities and I hope to do better next time.”
This is the first WTA1000 final that Zheng Qinwen has participated in. She said emotionally that Wuhan is the place where her dream began. This competition is held in Wuhan and everything is wonderful. She is grateful to the fans in her hometown for their support and encouragement.
This was Zheng’sfirst ever WTA1000 tournament final. She saidaffectionatelythat Wuhan was the place where her dream began, adding with the match being held in Wuhan this time around everything was perfect. She thanked her hometown fans for their support and encouragement.
Sabalenka also praised Zheng Qinwen and expressed her gratitude to the Wuhan fans. She said that Zheng Qinwen and her team achieved very good results, “I believe we will encounter them many times in the competition in the future.”
Sabalenka also praised Zheng and expressed her gratitude to the fans in Wuhan. She stated that the outcome was a positive one for Zhengand her team and believed that they wouldmeet in even more matchesin the future.
Zheng Qinwen in action
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Jimu News reporter Hu Dikai
Jimu News reporter: Hu Dikai
“I’m very happy that I was able to persevere to the end and win the trophy. Compared with her match against Zheng Qinwen at the US Open last year, she has made significant progress.” On the evening of October 13, after Sabalenka became the “Triple Crown” of the Wuhan Open, At the post-match press conference, Sabalenka praised Zheng Qinwen.
“I’m glad I pushed to the end and won the trophy. Compared to last year, when I played against Zheng Qinwen at the US Open, she has definitely improved.” On the evening of October 13, after becoming the “triple champion” of the Wuhan Open, Sabalenka praised Zheng Qinwen during the post-match press conference.
How to deal with the atmosphere when playing at Zheng Qinwen’s home court? Faced with reporters’ questions, Sabalenka said that during the duel with Zheng Qinwen, she focused on herself, thinking about tactics and improving her condition, and was not affected by off-field factors. The game process was very smoothly.
How did Sabalenkahandle her face off against the Wuhan native Zheng Qinwen on Chinese soil? Responding to the reporter’s question, Sabalenka statedduring the game, she focused on herself, reviewed her tactics and maintained high spirits. Unfazed by anything off the court, Sabalenkaenjoyed a fairly smooth match.
From China Open to Wuhan Open, how do you feel about this trip to China? Sabalenka said: “The breakthroughs made by Chinese players in the game, such as Zheng Qinwen winning the Olympic gold medal, entering the semi-finals of the China Open and the Wuhan Open finals, have made tennis more and more popular with the Chinese audience, which is a great development for Chinese tennis. success.”
How did she feelabout this trip toChina,from China Open to Wuhan Open? Sabalenkasaid:“The breakthroughs made by Chinese players in competitions, like Zheng Qinwen winning an Olympic gold medal, reaching the semifinals of the China Open and the finals of the Wuhan Open, have sparked an interest in tennis among Chinese spectators. This is a great success for Chinese tennis.”
In the past few days of competition, Sabalenka’s theme song has sounded many times at the scene. “The first time I heard this song was in Miami in July. I was injured at the time, but I liked this song very much. I was very surprised to hear it at the Wuhan Open,” said Sabalenka. , this song was probably composed by her boyfriend’s friend.
Recently during the tournament, Sabalenka’s theme song wasplayed repeatedly on the court. “The first time I heard this song was in Miami in July and I was injured at the time. I love this song, I was really surprised to hear it at the Wuhan Open.”Sabalenka said, adding that the track was created by a friend of her boyfriend.
In the current standings, Sabalenka ranks second in the world, only 69 points away from first place Swiatek. In the next year-end finals, she is expected to surpass it. In this regard, Sabalenka said that this is one of her plans, but the first thing she has to do is focus on herself and play hard. As for the results, everyone will wait and see.
Sabalenka ranks second in the worldon the current points table,only 69 points behind No. 1 Swiatek.In the upcoming year-end finals, she is expected to surpass her current ranking. On her current plans, Sabalenka confirmed this is one of her goals, however, her foremost concern is to focus on herselfand strive towards better performance. As for the results, the finals will be the ultimate showdown.
Sabalenka in action
