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New York — Qinwen Zheng Beat Donna Vekich In a rescheduling of the Olympic final, Russia prevailed 2-0 in the women’s singles event, advancing to the US Open quarterfinals with a 7-6 (2), 4-6, 6-2 victory on Monday morning, the latest finish to a women’s match in the tournament’s history.
It was 2:15 a.m. when No. 7 seed Zheng finished a match that lasted 2 hours and 50 minutes, a much tougher and longer test than the one she faced from Vekic in Paris last month.
Zheng won China’s first singles gold in tennis that day with a 6-2, 6-3 victory. She was not as impressive on the hard courts of the US Open, where Vekic feels much more comfortable than on the clay courts of Roland Garros.
But Zheng is still tough to beat on hard courts, having reached her first Grand Slam final at the Australian Open this year, where she lost. Aryna Sabalenka,
“I’m very proud of myself because it’s not easy to go from clay to hard surfaces, especially because I moved back to China, so I don’t have to practice like everyone else,” Zheng said. “So, basically, I’m just trying to handle myself, find a way to win matches even if I’m not at my best.”
She will play again on Tuesday against Sabalenka, the second seed who beat Zheng in the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows last year.
Zheng said she would be ready — provided she could get eight or nine hours of sleep once she got back to the hotel.
“I love playing against her and I’m looking forward to playing against her,” Zheng said of Sabalenka. “I know she’s one of the best hard court players and I’m looking forward to this moment.”
Vekic was on her best run at Grand Slams, reaching the semi-finals at Wimbledon. But the No. 24 seed knew she had missed a chance to go even further at Flushing Meadows.
She often paused for long periods in frustration when she missed a shot, sometimes pulling at her hair or resting her head in her hands.
The Croatian broke Zheng’s serve to win the second set and level the match. She pushed Zheng back with some powerful returns and then earned set point with a superb drop shot.
But after serving an ace early in the third set, Vekic made two straight unforced errors and was broken by Zheng. Zheng then broke again and took a 5-2 lead despite a sparse crowd playing until 2 a.m.
The women’s match had earlier ended at 2:13 a.m., when Maria Sakkari Beat Bianca Andreescu In the fourth round match of 2021.
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