Tennis Women’s Singles: Zheng Qinwen Stages Comeback Against Veteran Kerber, Advances to Semifinals

On July 31st, in the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympic Games Women’s Tennis Singles event, Chinese player Zheng Qinwen faced off against German player Kerber.

First set: Zheng Qinwen 6 (4) – 7 Kerber

Starting slowly, Zheng Qinwen lost her first service game and found herself in an unfavorable 0-2 position. Both players then held their service games strongly. In the sixth game, Zheng Qinwen created a break point and successfully converted it, leveling the score at 3-3. Zheng Qinwen, now energized, won two consecutive games and entered her service game leading 5-3. Kerber then suddenly rallied, winning three straight games. Refusing to let her opponent take the first set on serve, Zheng Qinwen forced a tie-break. In the tie-break, Kerber again showed late-stage strength, winning 7-4 and taking the first set 7-6. The first set alone lasted 53 minutes.

Second set: Zheng Qinwen 6 – 4 Kerber

In the opening game, Kerber scored consistently on serve, taking a 1-0 lead. In the following two games, Zheng Qinwen regained her form, winning both to lead 2-1 over Kerber. In the fourth game, Zheng Qinwen made several unforced errors, which Kerber capitalized on to break serve, leveling the score at 2-2. In the fifth game, Zheng Qinwen took the first two points, but Kerber used her serving advantage to hold serve, leading 3-2 over Zheng Qinwen. In the next two games, both players held serve strongly, each taking one game, leaving Zheng Qinwen trailing 3-4. In the eighth game, Zheng Qinwen held serve confidently, leveling the score at 4-4. In the ninth game, Zheng Qinwen took three consecutive points, breaking serve at a crucial moment to lead 5-4. In her final service game, Zheng Qinwen did not give her opponent any chances, taking the second set 6-4 directly.

Third set: Zheng Qinwen 7-6 (6) Kerber

In the first game of the decisive set, Kerber held serve by scoring consistently, taking a 1-0 lead over Zheng Qinwen. In the second game, Zheng Qinwen took two points for holding serve, then served an ace to hold serve successfully, leveling the score at 1-1. In the following two games, Kerber regained form, winning both to extend her lead to 3-1. In the fifth game, there were seven deuces, and under this stalemate, veteran Kerber eventually seized the opportunity to hold serve, taking a critical game. In the sixth game, Zheng Qinwen withstood the pressure, holding serve quickly to take a game, trailing 2-4. In the seventh game, Zheng Qinwen took three consecutive break points, then quickly broke serve to level the score! In the eighth game, Zheng Qinwen maintained her hot form, winning four points in a row, leveling the score at 4-4, bringing both players back to an even footing. In the ninth game, Kerber took three points for holding serve, then held serve successfully, leading 5-4 over Zheng Qinwen. In the tenth game, Zheng Qinwen promptly adjusted her state, holding serve quickly, leveling the score once again. In the eleventh game, Kerber held serve strongly, extending the score to 6-5. In the twelfth game, Zheng Qinwen committed another unforced error on her first serve, then won three points in a row to reach game point, and after a successful first serve, she leveled the score at 6-6, forcing a tie-break to decide the set.

In the tie-break decider, Zheng Qinwen withstood the pressure, winning the tie-break 8-6. Ultimately, Zheng Qinwen staged a comeback, defeating Kerber 2-1 and advancing to the semifinals of the women’s singles!