Zheng Qinwen Makes History in Beijing: Beats Andreeva 7-5, 6-4 to Become the China Open's First Chinese Singles Champion
BEIJING, Oct. 11 — Zheng Qinwen completed a landmark home triumph at the China Open on Sunday, defeating fourth seed and French Open champion Mirra Andreeva 7-5, 6-4 in the women's singles final to become the first Chinese player to win the tournament since its founding in 2004. The title is the first WTA 1000 crown of Zheng's career.
Playing as a wildcard ranked No. 54 in the world, the Olympic champion had to earn it the hard way. Andreeva, the world No. 5, broke early for a 2-0 lead, and after the pair traded breaks she moved ahead 5-4 in the opening set. Zheng saved three set points in the 10th game to level at 5-5 and won the final 11 points of the set. The second set followed a similar script: an early exchange of breaks, three break points saved by Andreeva at 4-4, then a decisive Zheng break in the ninth game before she closed out the match with an ace after one hour and 43 minutes. Zheng struck 51 aces across the tournament.
Her route to the final underscored the scale of the comeback. Her first four matches all went to three sets, including a 7-6, 4-6, 7-5 battle with 18th seed Marie Bouzkova, before she beat sixth seed Elina Svitolina 6-3, 7-6 in the quarterfinals and 13th seed Elise Mertens 7-5, 6-2 in the semifinals. It is her sixth career title and her first since Tokyo in October 2024.
The victory caps a long road back from injury. After winning Olympic gold at Paris 2024 and rising to a career-high No. 4, Zheng underwent surgery on her right elbow in July 2025 and missed nearly six months. Her ranking fell as low as No. 160 midway through this season. The 1,000 ranking points from Beijing will return her to the top 30 — No. 23 in the live rankings — when the new list is published on Monday, alongside a winner's prize of $1,151,380.
"Finally I once again become the one who is making new history," Zheng told reporters afterward, adding that at her lowest moment many said she could not come back, but that she had found her inner fire again. She then took a microphone and sang for the home crowd — a fitting end to the night Chinese tennis had been waiting 22 years for.
(Sources: Reuters, WTA)
Source: 路透社、WTA官方
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 郑钦文在2024年巴黎奥运会比赛，Kuberzog 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0（Wikimedia Commons）
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