Last year’s runner-up Zheng Qinwen was defeated in the second round by German player Laura Siegemund on Wednesday, marking the biggest upset of the Australian Open so far.
Olympic champion “Queen Wen” got flustered as she was defeated 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 by the world’s 97th-ranked player.
Veteran Siegemund, who is turning 37 in March, is the second oldest player in the women’s field in Melbourne.
In her 27th Grand Slam, she got impressive results against the 22-year-old fifth seed at John Cain Arena.
“I knew I just had to give my best tennis performance. Since I didn’t have anything to lose, I reminded myself to play freely,” said the German.
She’s an incredible athlete, one of the top players in the game today. But I’m confident in my abilities and wanted to show that to myself and put up a strong challenge.
Zheng faced strong pressure early as Siegemund matched her shot for shot from the baseline, and there was an overall sense that Zheng was out of sync and lacking in momentum.
“I wasn’t satisfied with my first set; it could have been better. At the same time, I thought the other player was playing very well today,” Zheng said, reflecting on her loss to Sabalenka.
Absolutely, it’s just about tennis, no more than that.
Siegemund last achieved a win over a top-10 player almost three years ago but wasn’t intimidated by Zheng’s well-known serve, hitting 11 return winners in the first set alone.
After being called over for a time violation, Siegemund created two break point opportunities when she was matched up against Zheng at 4-4.
He successfully saved the first shot, but missed the second, struggling with the German player’s persistent and powerful serves.
– Mind frazzled –
Siegemund was feeling the pressure of serving to win the set, but her fast and agile movements left her, allowing Zheng to fight back.
Play continued until Siegemund took the lead 6-3 after winning two consecutive points and securing her first advantage in the tiebreaker.
Siegemund was now playing nearly error-free and broke Zheng’s serve to take a 2-0 lead in the second set.
He appeared nearly defeated but managed to make a comeback with the help of two highly improbable situations that turned the tables in his favor.
First, a net cord fell into place to secure the win, and a frantic swing at a wayward serve sailed past the net post and just brushed against the sideline.
Zheng grew upset over her second fault in the next service game, resulting in a first serve at 15-30.
She complained bitterly to the umpire that she couldn’t see the shot clock, but her complaint fell on deaf ears, and she subsequently lost her temper.
I had the clock on the sidelines, so if I bounced the ball, I couldn’t see it,” explained Zheng. “So, I don’t know if I’m running late or running early.
I was really shocked to get that second (warning). That one totally threw me off my game in the match.
Zheng’s thoughts were all over the place as she completely flubbed the second serve and then double-faulted on a break point, giving Siegemund a crucial 3-1 advantage.
Siegemund secured a famous win and will face the winner of the all-Russian match-up between Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Anastasia Potapova.
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