China’s Wang Xiyu showcased her resilience at the Australian Open, battling through a challenging second set to defeat Austria’s Julia Grabher 6-1, 7-5 in the first round on Tuesday. The victory marked her first win at Rod Laver Arena in three years.
Last month, Wang faced a disappointing exit at the ASB Classic in Auckland, losing in the first round to 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin. However, against the lower-ranked Grabher, the 23-year-old quickly found her stride, claiming seven consecutive games to take control of the match.
Despite experiencing two breaks of serve in the second set, Wang maintained her composure to secure the win. She will face the USA’s Emma Navarro in the next round.
Another standout performer, Wang Yafan, delivered an impressive comeback, overcoming Hungary’s Anna Bondar 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. After dropping the first set, the 30-year-old rallied by breaking Bondar in the eighth game of the second set and carried that momentum into the decider. Wang will next compete against Russian ninth seed Daria Kasatkina for a spot in the last 32.
In a setback for China, Yuan Yue fell in a thrilling three-set battle against 27th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. The Russian secured a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory, ending Yuan’s run in the tournament.
On the men’s side, Zhang Zhizhen, China’s top-ranked male player, endured a grueling five-set match against 13th seed Holger Rune but ultimately fell short, losing 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. Zhang demonstrated remarkable tenacity and the ability to handle pressure but couldn’t capitalize at critical moments.
Meanwhile, Shang Juncheng had to withdraw due to injury during his match against Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, resulting in all of China’s male players being eliminated in the first round.
Reference(s):
Australian Open: Chinese women excel but men suffer early eliminations
cgtn.com
