Zheng stuns Swiatek to reach Olympic final
Iga Swiatek was beaten on her beloved Paris clay in the semi-finals of the Olympic Games
Zheng Qinwen (Action Plus/Panoramic)
Sixth seed Zheng Qinwen beat world No 1 Iga Swiatek 6-2, 7-5 to reach the Olympic final at Roland-Garros.
The Pole made 36 unforced errors as opposed to her opponent’s 13 – uncharacteristic of her on the surface upon which she has reigned surpreme.
It makes Zheng the first Asian-born player to reach a singles final at the Olympics and also the first to defeat the WTA’s top-ranked player on clay.
Swiatek had been unbeaten at Roland Garros for 1,149 days, and was on a 25-match winning streak, but was nowhere near her best on Philippe-Chatrier on Thursday. She will still be looking to win the bronze medal.
After a one-sided first set with two breaks in favour of Zheng, the second set was evenly balanced between the two players. Swiatek even got off to a flying start, quickly taking the lead (4-0 double break).
But then her numerous errors allowed the Chinese player to claw her way back into the match. Under pressure, the world No 1 cracked under pressure, dropping her serve at 5-5. Zheng then saved a break point at 30-40 before ending the match on her first match point.
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