Google News Zhengzhou Open: Home favourite Qinwen Zheng's a step away from glory at the WTA 500!
by ABBEY JOHNSON
Saturday’s Zhengzhou Open semi-final between Qinwen Zheng and Jasmine Paolini was a repeat of this year’s Palermo Ladies Open. The result turned to be the same as in Italy. Zheng won 6-2, 6-3 after an hour and 15 minutes.
Zheng hit five aces. Although she put in only 45% of her first serves to Paolini’s 69%, she won 85% (17 of 20) of her first-serve points. Paolini could win only 45% of her first-serve points, or 18 of 40 points she put in.
Paolini fared slightly better when it came to winning second-serve points. She won 50% to Zheng winning 42%. Paolini was able to convert two of three break points on Zheng’s serve but conceded six break points on her own serve that helped her opponent get ahead in their clash.
For the match, Zheng won 58 points to Paolini’s 44. Of these 58, 19 were winners. In the final, Zheng will play Barbora Krejcikova. The seventh seed from the Czech Republic won 6-3, 6-0 against the eighth-seeded Daria Kasatkina in an hour and a half.
Zhengzhou Open: Barbora Krejcikova ruthless against Daria Kasatkina
In the second set, Kasatkina put in 90% of her first serves to her opponent’s 50%. But the latter won all seven points played on her first serve. She also won 13 of 19 points played on return on Kasatkina’s first serve.
Kasatkina played only two points on her second serve of which she won one. Krejcikova won all but two of the seven points played on her second serve. For the match, Krejcikova faced two break points. Both of these break points came in the first set of which she failed to save one.
She converted five break points on Kasatkina’s serve, three of which came in the second set. In the final of the Zhengzhou Open, Barbora Krejcikova will be wanting to win her third title of 2023. Qinwen Zheng, meanwhile, will claim a maiden crown in her native nation.