A wild night for Chinese tennis! Two consecutive wins in women’s singles, Wang Xinyu dominates, Zheng Qinwen advances 2-1 over Kenin

On February 10th Beijing time, the WTA1000 Doha women’s singles first round was fiercely contested, resulting in a night of great news. Chinese players achieved two consecutive wins, with Wang Xinyu and Zheng Qinwen both triumphing to clear the first round. Wang Xinyu defeated Arango 2-0 in straight sets, and the comeback player Zheng Qinwen overturned Grand Slam champion Kenin 2-1, together advancing to the last 32!

Wang Xinyu faced Arango. After reaching the round of 16 at this year's Australian Open, a breakthrough that pushed her world ranking to 33, Wang met a tough challenge in the first round against world No. 49 Arango. From the start, Wang attacked aggressively, breaking serve repeatedly to claim the first set 6-1. In the second set, Wang built a commanding 5-2 lead, but Arango fought back fiercely to level the score. At the crucial moment, Wang steadied herself, winning the final two games to take the set 7-5 and the match 2-0, avoiding a tough battle. After advancing to the round of 32, Wang competed in doubles but was eliminated. Her next singles opponent is Asia’s top player, Leylah Fernandez, who is in great form after beating Sabalenka to win the Australian Open, making Wang’s path forward very challenging and hopes slim!

Zheng Qinwen vs. Kenin. Zheng missed several tournaments due to injury, causing a significant drop in ranking to No. 26. After a long recovery, she returned fully energized at the Doha event. Her first-round opponent was Australian Open champion Kenin, now ranked 29. Zheng started slowly, seemingly adjusting to the court and lagging behind Kenin’s pace, losing the first set 4-6. However, from the second set onward, Zheng found her rhythm, delivering powerful serves and multiple aces, quickly taking control and crushing Kenin 6-1, 6-2 to complete a 2-1 comeback victory. This marked a strong return for Zheng as she moves into the round of 32. Her next opponent is Parks, a qualifier who has been the dark horse of the tournament!

We hope Wang Xinyu and Zheng Qinwen can keep winning in the second round. Let’s watch closely and cheer them on!

Wen / Sports Novels