Chinese tennis player Zheng Qinwen engineered a remarkable escape at the US Open on Monday, overcoming a 5-0 first-set deficit to defeat No. 8 seed Iga Swiatek 7-5, 6-3 in New York and advance to the tournament quarterfinals.
Zheng pulled off the improbable feat for the second consecutive match. Two days after she was down 5-0 in the third set before winning the final seven games to stun No. 22 Madison Keys 1-6, 7-6 (3), 7-5, the 2024 Olympic gold medalist from China repeated the trick against one of the sport’s most dominant modern champions, sealing a straight-sets victory on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
How Zheng Overturned a 5-0 Deficit Against Swiatek
The match began as a masterclass in control for Swiatek, who raced through the opening exchanges. The Poland star forced Zheng into early errors on both serve and return to build a 5-0 lead.
Yet the momentum evaporated as quickly as it arrived. Swiatek couldn’t convert two set points serving at 5-1 and Zheng fought off another when Swiatek served with a 5-3 lead. Swiatek couldn’t convert two set points and let the opening frame slip away as Zheng steadily found her range on return as Swiatek’s level dropped, ultimately winning seven consecutive games to claim the opening set before pulling away in the second.
I guess to come back 0-5 yesterday is not lucky, that’s all I can say,
Zheng said.
In the second set, Zheng maintained the pressure. Zheng saved break points on her second serve during the pivotal turning point of the match before launching a deep return and a backhand winner down the line to break Swiatek’s serve, a game that appeared to drain the remaining momentum from her opponent, who grew visibly frustrated as unforced errors mounted.
Swiatek’s Service Woes and a Tough End to a Grand Slam Season
For Swiatek, 25, a fourth-round exit is a disappointing end to her Grand Slam season, with a quarter-final appearance at the Australian Open her best result. She was beaten in round four of the French Open, while the defence of her Wimbledon title ended in the third round. It means that, for the first time since 2021, Swiatek will end a year without winning one of the sport’s four majors.
Swiatek, who received treatment to her left thigh when leading 2-1 in the second set, had entered the US Open in excellent form by winning the WTA 1000 event in Toronto and getting to the semi-finals in Cincinnati, while she had progressed through to round four without dropping a set.
Reflecting on losing the first set to Zheng, Swiatek said she simply missed too many shots after going 5-0 up.
My focus was the same as always,
said the six-time major winner. I wanted to play the same as always. [I] just started to miss too much, wanted to adjust it, but nothing kind of worked at that point.
Qualifying Run and the Road Ahead in New York
Zheng was a U.S. Open quarterfinalist in 2023 and 2024 but after elbow surgery had to go through qualifying this year to reach the main draw. Zheng is on her way back to the form that made her a world number four and Olympic champion in Paris 2024.
By making the final eight, she becomes the first qualifier to reach the final eight in Flushing Meadows since Emma Raducanu won the title in 2021.
The win sets up a quarterfinal showdown against world number two Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, after she defeated two-times major winner and former U.S. Open champion Naomi Osaka of Japan 6-1, 6-4 on Monday. Two-times major winner Rybakina will face Olympic champion Zheng in the quarter-finals and is now one win away from becoming world number one for the first time.
