Wuhan, Oct 10 (IANS) China’s Zheng Qinwen could meet top seed Aryna Sabalenka in the second round of the Wuhan Open after the singles draw was revealed Saturday, while Wang Xiyu and Wang Xinyu were drawn against each other in an all-Chinese first-round match.
Zheng will open against American Ann Li, with Sabalenka awaiting the winner after receiving a first-round bye. Zheng has won just one of their nine previous meetings.
This week, Zheng Qinwen defeated Belgium’s Elise Mertens 7-5, 6-2 here on Saturday to reach the China Open women’s singles final for the first time, while home veteran Zhang Shuai and the Czech Republic’s Katerina Siniakova advanced to the women’s doubles final.
Zheng, a wild card, broke 13th seed Mertens in the second game, but the Belgian broke back in the seventh to level at 4-4. After a tight finish to the opening set, Zheng prevailed 7-5 before taking control of the second to seal the victory. The result marked Zheng’s best performance at the event and made her the first home player in tournament history to reach the singles final.
The Wuhan Open is the final WTA 1000 event of the season. Sabalenka and second seed Jessica Pegula were drawn in opposite halves, with Iga Swiatek and Mirra Andreeva also in the field. The top eight seeds received first-round byes, reports Xinhua.
Four of the five Chinese players in the main draw landed in the top half alongside Sabalenka. Wild card Wang Xiyu, the Asian Games champion, leads Wang Xinyu 2-1 in their previous WTA meetings. The winner will next face American Iva Jovic or Slovakia’s Mia Pohankova.
Zhang Shuai, the 37-year-old veteran, will open against ninth seed Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion.
Guo Hanyu is the only Chinese player in the bottom half and opens against Romania’s Sorana Cirstea. Pegula, who also received a first-round bye, could next meet Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko. Italy’s Jasmine Paolini will open against the Czech Republic’s Sara Bejlek, while the Philippines’ Alexandra Eala will face a qualifier.
In qualifying, Chinese wild card Shi Han rallied past top seed Peyton Stearns 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 to reach the final round. Yuan Yue lost to Caty McNally of the United States 6-2, 6-3, while Zhu Lin withdrew.
–IANS
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