Zheng Qinwen defeats Wang Yafan to reach week 2 at Australian Open
Qinwen Zheng edged out Yafan Wang 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (8) on Saturday night. She’ll play Oceane Dodin in the next round
(Antoine Couvercelle / Panoramic)
No 12 seed Qinwen Zheng survived a tense encounter with a compatriot to move into the last 16 of the Australian Open by edging out Yafan Wang 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (8) at Melbourne Park on Saturday afternoon.
Zheng, ranked No 15, will play Oceane Dodin next.
The 21-year-old has won seven of her last eight matches at the majors – she played her maiden major quarter-final at last year’s US Open.
On Saturday Zheng needed all her energy to fight past the 29-year-old from Nanjing, who converted four of five break points in the match to force Zheng to a decider as she contested a third-round match at a major for the first time.
Zheng broke for 3-2 in set three, and consolidated for 4-2, but Wang broke back for 5-5.
The third-set super tiebreak was close the whole way, with Zheng winning two points from 7-7 to earn two match points. She missed on her first but took care of the second to clinch victory in two hours and 40 minutes.
Qinwen Zheng won against American Ashlyn Krueger (3-6, 6-2, 6-3) and Katie Boulter (6-3, 6-3) in the previous rounds.
Earlier in the tournament, Wang, ranked No 94, beat Romanian Sorana Cirstea, the No 22 seed (0-6, 7-5, 6-2) and edged out Emma Raducanu (6-4, 4-6, 6-4).
Melbourne (Grand Slam), other third-round results (Melbourne Park, hard, USD 58.910.000, most recent results first):
- Elina Svitolina vs. Viktorija Golubic
- Iga Swiatek vs. Linda Noskova
- Jelena Ostapenko vs. Victoria Azarenka
- Anna Blinkova vs. Jasmine Paolini: saturday
- Oceane Dodin beat Clara Burel: 6-2, 6-4
- Dayana Yastremska (Q) beat Emma Navarro (27): 6-2, 2-6, 6-1
- Anna Kalinskaya beat Sloane Stephens: 6-7 (8), 6-1, 6-4
- Barbora Krejcikova (9) beat Storm Hunter (Q): 4-6, 7-5, 6-3
- Maria Timofeeva (Q) beat Beatriz Haddad Maia (10): 7-6 (7), 6-3
- Magdalena Frech beat Anastasia Zakharova (Q): 4-6, 7-5, 6-4
- Coco Gauff (4) beat Alycia Parks: 6-0, 6-2
- Marta Kostyuk beat Elina Avanesyan: 2-6, 6-4, 6-4
- Mirra Andreeva beat Diane Parry: 1-6, 6-1, 7-6 (5)
- Aryna Sabalenka (2) beat Lesia Tsurenko (28): 6-0, 6-0
- Amanda Anisimova beat Paula Badosa: 7-5, 6-4
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