On October 11, in the women's singles quarterfinals of the 2024 Wuhan Open, the No. 5 seed and Chinese player Zheng Qinwen defeated the No. 3 seed and Italy's Paulini 2-1, and the China Open and Wuhan Open broke into the women's singles semifinals back-to-back, and she will stage a "Chinese derby" with Wang Xinyu in the semifinals.
Five years ago, at the age of 16, Zheng Qinwen made her debut at the Wuhan Open as a junior player with a wildcard for qualifying, and she had her first chance to be a professional player on the highest level of the tour, second only to the Grand Slam. It was also from that time that this Hubei girl gradually turned her dreams into reality one by one. Now she's back in a city full of childhood memories with a new title, and it's her strongest backing that will continue to be with her on her way.
Zheng Qinwen appeared.
Returning as a "Queen"
Born in 2014, the Wuhan Open was originally a WTA Super 5 tournament, attracting 19 of the world's top 20 players, including Williams, Sharapova and Wozniacki, and is still the second WTA1000 Grand Slam tournament after the Grand Slam. Although Zheng Qinwen was one of the best young players in Hubei at the time, it wasn't until 2019 that she had the first chance to participate, when the Wuhan Open gave Zheng Qinwen a qualifying wild card for the first time when she was under 17 years old, and that was her first chance to play against a tour-level professional. Speaking of that experience, Zheng Qinwen still remembers it vividly, and it was then that he began to vaguely realize that the gap between himself and professional players is not unattainable.
"It was my first time playing against a professional player on the tour and it was very exciting." "I remember that opponent, I don't think she's as strong as me, but because I was so excited, a lot of the balls flew off on their own," she said. Including at that time I thought they were going to play very fast, but when I came on the pitch I found that it wasn't as fast as I thought. Even though Zheng Qinwen was out of the tournament after only playing one qualifying match in her first martial arts trip, she still received a prize of 10,000 yuan from the tournament. A few months later, the girl donated the prize money to her hometown, which was in a special period at the time, when the total prize money of her entire career was less than 100,000 yuan.
Since then, Zheng Qinwen has grown faster than many people imagined, after moving from the junior tennis world to the professional tour, she has to travel all over the world to participate in 2-3 tournaments almost every month, from the first victory in a low-level event, to the first Grand Slam qualification, and then to the first WTA Tour title, Zheng Qinwen has achieved self-breakthrough step by step, and the world ranking has soared from more than 600 in 2020. She finished runner-up at the Australian Open earlier this year, becoming only the second Chinese player after Li Na to reach a Grand Slam final and entering the top 10 for the first time in the world rankings. And this past summer, Zheng Qinwen defeated the world No. 1 Swiatek and other celebrities at the Paris Olympics, and won the women's singles Olympic gold medal in history, and the "Rocket Girl" finally became "Queen Wen".
Therefore, when he returned to the Wuhan Open after five years, Zheng Qinwen's every step was like a "queen" conquering new territory: playing as a seeded player for the first time, winning the main draw for the first time, reaching the quarterfinals for the first time...... "Compared with five years ago, I am definitely a different player." "Now I'm a big seed, I'm different in mentality, I'm definitely more in control of the game than before, and I've improved in all aspects of the game." She also made no secret of her special feelings for the martial arts network, even if she admitted that she was mentally tired, "Just like you said, you have to go to work when you don't want to, just kidding, no, I'm still very happy to play in the martial arts open." Because this is my hometown, maybe in a different place, I really don't want to go to this class. ”
Interact with the fans.
Everywhere you go, you're surrounded by fans.
Sign autographs for fans after winning a match.
"Zheng Qinwen fever" exploded the martial arts network.
Played with the fans and took a selfie.
Enjoy the love of the "mother's family".
Zheng Qinwen has a special affection for the martial arts open, and the fans here are even more fond of her. Before coming to Wuhan, Zheng Qinwen accidentally broke her hand in the semifinals of the China Open held in Beijing, even though she repeatedly expressed that it was just a skin injury and not a big deal, fans were still constantly concerned about her injury. Here, people hope that she can fly high, and they hope that she can fly happily and freely, and this support really gives Zheng Qinwen the motivation to keep fighting.
Her debut in the main draw of the Wuhan Open was at 19 o'clock on October 9, and more than an hour before the start of the game, the Optics Valley International Tennis Center began to flow with people, and the attendance rate of the center court, which can accommodate 15,000 spectators, was nearly 70%, setting a record for a single court of the Wuhan Open at that time. And because the Olympic champion has mentioned many times that she likes to listen to Deng Ziqi's songs, she also deliberately played Deng Ziqi's version of the Cantonese golden song "Like You" when she appeared. In the end, with the cheers of nearly 10,000 fans, Zheng Qinwen sent 9 aces, swept through the two sets, and won the first victory of his career in the Wuhan Open.
Domineering response.
In the second match, Zheng's opponent, Fernandes, ranked 28th in the world, has won 10 straight matches against Chinese players since entering the WTA Tour in 2021, including two defeats to Zheng, who was also excluded from the quarterfinals in Doha this year. In this rematch between the martial arts and the net, Fernandez's comprehensive strength may not be as good as Zheng Qinwen, who is already in the TOP10, but psychologically he is not lagging behind, and he successfully turned the tables in the first set when Zheng Qinwen took the lead in breaking serve, and won the first place. However, a "small episode" in the second set may have changed the slightly tense situation. At that time, Zheng Qinwen's serve was interfered with by Fernandez's team, and his theory of stepping forward caused the opponent to protest, and the two had a verbal altercation on the court, and the home crowd immediately booed the seemingly aggressive Canada opponent to "support" their own children. Then Fernandez's momentum on the court was gradually suppressed, and he was directly beaten 6-0 by Zheng Qinwen in the deciding set, the main reason for which was that Zheng Qinwen's serve became sharper and sharper, but perhaps the strong support of the "maiden audience" played some effect.
Thank you to the hometown fans.
"I love the atmosphere this year because I like to play in a crowded place." Zheng Qinwen said that she has been able to correctly look at the pressure brought by the expectations of the outside world, "I know that the Wuhan fans want to watch me play, I have felt everyone's enthusiasm, the audience cheering for me is definitely a good thing, I think it is pressure or motivation, it all depends on what I think about their cheering, at this stage it must be a kind of motivation, I just the more people the more excited." ”
This place of peace is my hometown
In fact, when it comes to his hometown, after the Olympics, there was a discussion among the Hubei fan base about where Zheng Qinwen was from. It is not difficult to understand that fans everywhere want to shorten the distance with this "fellow", but this question does not need to be explained for herself, born in Shiyan and raised in Wuhan, Zheng Qinwen has always been a child of Jingchu.
"As soon as I came back [Wuhan], I saw posters and pictures of me everywhere on the streets, and many people recognized me and called my name everywhere I went, and it was all crazy." Zheng Qinwen said. She spent her time in Wuhan from the age of 8 to 13, and many of her relatives now live in the city, "I think [Wuhan] is more of a city that has built my tennis foundation because from the time I came to Wuhan, my tennis dream slowly began to take shape, and then I put a lot of effort into it." "I stayed here from the age of 8 to about 13, which means that I spent a very important part of my growth in Wuhan, and I developed a lot of habits, including personality." ”
Returning to the city where he lived in his childhood, Zheng Qinwen also has many memories in his heart, "I enjoyed my time in primary school in Wuhan, but because it is always possible to change schools after one year of study, and I have to change to the next school when I first get acquainted with my classmates, so it is a pity, and there is no opportunity to establish deeper friendships." "Actually, I think that was the time when you could really play without worry, after all, it wasn't so important to win or lose at that time, and you could enjoy tennis every day." ”
Returning home for the competition also gave many of her family and friends the opportunity to see her progress on the spot, "My grandmother, aunt and uncle all came. Zheng Qinwen introduced, "There are still many friends who want to come, but I really don't have tickets." The reporter not only saw her family sitting in the stands at the competition site, but also saw Zheng Qinwen's grandmother and other relatives happily celebrating her birthday at the 22nd birthday event held by the Wuhan Tennis Organizing Committee. Fans not only love Zheng Qinwen, but also are enthusiastic about her team, and her coach Perry · Riba and agent Xi Li are often recognized and cheered by fans.
"I felt the support from everyone and I loved the atmosphere." Zheng Qinwen said that she is really grateful for the love of the people in her hometown, "At the same time, I hope to continue to stay focused and calm and make greater progress." ”
Feature writing: Nandu reporter Wang Yayun
Feature photography: Nandu reporter Li Zhanjun