On Sunday, Chinese tennis sensation Qinwen Zheng clinched her inaugural WTA 500 title in Zhengzhou. She secured her victory in a thrilling final against Czech player Barbora Krejčíková, triumphing with a score of 2-6, 6-2, 6-4. The intense final match spanned an impressive 2 hours and 26 minutes.
Barbora Krejčíková, currently ranked 18th on the WTA rankings, advanced to the final by defeating Petra Martić in the round of 16. She received a walkover against Lesia Tsurenko in the quarterfinal and also defeated Daria Kasatkina before setting up the encounter against Zheng, marking their first-ever match against each other.
In a video shared on social media on Sunday, Qinwen Zheng was captured in a celebratory mood, singing on stage after the match, all while still wearing her tennis kit.
During a post-match press conference, Zheng expressed that the enthusiastic crowd of fans served as great motivation, and she described the feeling as truly amazing.
"When I was on the court finishing the last point, I was feeling super happy, All the crowd yelling for me, they supported me in full, in that moment, the feeling was unexplainable. It’s a lot of pressure, you could see in the match. In the first set, I was leading 2-0, [then] I lost six games in a row. There were a lot of ups and downs, but in the end, the important thing is to win the match, whatever happens. Right now, I’m just feeling super happy and want to enjoy the time with my team.” Zheng said
Key moments from Qinwen Zheng's 2023 season
21-year-old, Qinwen Zheng has been enjoying a remarkable season. Her victory at the Zhengzhou Open marked her second Hologic WTA Tour title this season and in her career. She first claimed her maiden WTA Tour title at the 2023 Palermo Ladies Open, where she triumphed over Italian tennis star Jasmine Paolini with a score of 6–4, 1–6, 6–1 to secure the title. Additionally, this season, she achieved her career-best singles ranking of world No. 19 on May 22, 2023.
In September, Zheng achieved another significant milestone by reaching her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at the 2023 US Open. She made an impressive upset by defeating last year's finalist and 5th seed, Ons Jabeur, before being defeated with a score of 6-1, 6-4 by the current world No. 1 and US Open runner-up, Aryna Sabalenka.
Adding to her latest victory in Zhengzhou, Zheng joins the esteemed ranks of Li Na and Zheng Saisai and has now become the third Chinese woman to claim a title at the WTA 500-level or higher.