Qinwen Zheng celebrates after winning a match against Iga Swiatek. (AP Photo)
121. In a girls’ doubles first-round match, India’s Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi and Ukraine’s Antonina Sushkova rallied to score a 1-6, 6-4, 10-1 win over the American pairing of Emery Combs and Olivia De Los Reyes.
After Zheng fell in the first round of qualifying in Toronto, Riba told the Olympic gold medallist she needed to put in some work. “In tennis, you’re more used to losing than winning,” she said. Qinwen, who was unable to string more than two wins together in a tournament since her comeback to competition in February, said the last few months had come with many lessons — about herself, tennis and life.
It is quite a turnaround for a player who underwent surgery on her right elbow last July and entered the US Open qualifying draw ranked No. “You can lose a set from any score, so nothing special about that.
Chinese Qualifier Overcomes Early Deficit Again
In a remarkable display of resilience, the Chinese qualifier secured a 7-5, 6-3 victory over six-time major champion and former world No. 1 Iga Swiatek. This match marked the second consecutive time she rallied from a 0-5 deficit in a set. Previously, in the third round against Madison Keys, she had also staged a comeback, winning seven straight games after falling behind 0-5 in the deciding set.
It was a telling gesture from a player who had spent the past few months searching for a way to put the pieces of her match-play puzzle together.