Olympic champion Zheng dethroned as 2025 Australian Open delivers first shock | Tennis news
Zheng retires after a second-round loss to unseeded Siegemund as former champions Sabalenka and Osaka battle it out.
Zheng Qinwen became the first big name to exit the women’s draw at the Australian Open after the Olympic champion was surprised by Laura Siegemund, while top seed Aryna Sabalenka made a difficult situation in her second-round match before going through.
Jessica Pegula, who lost to Sabalenka in last year’s US Open final, made sure to go through, while Tokyo Olympics winner Belinda Bencic moved on after a brief rain delay on the outdoor courts on day four.
China’s Zheng was trying to emulate compatriot Li Na’s 2014 triumph at Melbourne Park, but her hopes evaporated at the John Cain Arena, where unseeded German Siegemund pulled off a stunning 7-6(3), 6-3 win.
The fifth seed left the court looking like she was going to cry, while world number 97 Siegemund was beaming from ear to ear after the famous victory.
“I knew I just had to play more than my best tennis – you’ve got nothing to lose so I told myself to let loose,” Siegemund said on court.
“She’s an amazing player, she’s one of the best players right now. But I know I can play and I wanted it to be a tough fight.”
Zheng said it was just not her day.
“I had a lot of chances to break her in the first set, but you know maybe I didn’t have the concentration at that point,” said the 22-year-old.
“At the same time, I felt he was playing really well. It’s tennis, nothing more.”
Sabalenka is looking to become the first woman to win three consecutive titles at Melbourne Park since Martina Hingis, from 1997 to 1999, and while the Belarusian beat Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 6-3, 7-5, she didn’t have it her way.
After sweeping the first two games of the match at Rod Laver Arena, Sabalenka twice traded breaks with the world No.54 before taking control for a 5-2 lead and closing out the first set on serve.
The three-time Grand Slam champion’s serve came under a lot of pressure in the next set and she found herself trailing 4-1 when an inspired Bouzas Maneiro began hitting winners from both ends of the court.
Sabalenka found a spark from somewhere and fought back from 5-2 down to level at 5-5 and fired a backhand wine to break again in the next game before wrapping up the contest to extend her hard-court main-match winning streak to 16.
“She played amazing tennis today and it was really tough,” Sabalenka said.
“I mean, I expected this kind of tennis from her, so I’m really glad that I was able to win this match.
“In the second set … I wasn’t in too much of a rush after 5-2, I said, ‘OK, whatever, we’re just going to leave this second set and move on. And yes, I was able to turn it around.
“I’m extremely happy to win in two sets, especially against someone like her, who makes you work for every point.”
Seventh-seeded American Pegula beat Belgium’s Elise Mertens 6-4, 6-2 at the Margaret Court Arena, while Benčić beat Suzan Lamens 6-1, 7-6(3) after Olga Danilović surprised 25th-seeded Liudmila Samsonova 6- 1, 6-2.
Former world number one Osaka, Australian champion in 2019 and 2021 but now unseeded, came back to defeat 20th seed Karolina Muchova 1-6, 6-1, 6-3.
