No. 3 seed Zheng Qinwen from China secured a win in a prominent second-round match at the Credit One Charleston Open on Wednesday night. She defeated Maria Sakkari of Greece with a score of 6-4, 6-1, advancing to the Round of 16.
Making her first appearance in Charleston since her debut tournament in 2022, Zheng, the reigning Olympic gold medalist, took 1 hour and 32 minutes to overcome former World No. 3 Sakkari, who reached the Charleston semifinals last year.
Here are key points from the match:
Zheng Continues Clay-Court Dominance: While Sakkari had a prior 2-1 lead in head-to-head encounters with Zheng, all previous matches were on hard courts.
Clay proved to be a different surface. Zheng`s most recent competition on clay before this week was her gold medal victory at the 2024 Paris Olympics, held at Roland Garros.
Carrying her clay-court confidence into this match, Zheng has now achieved 12 consecutive wins on this surface. This streak includes her title win in Palermo before the Olympics.
In contrast, Sakkari`s ranking has declined from No. 7 to No. 64 in the past year, and her record for the year is 6 wins and 11 losses. Sakkari was aiming for her first Top 10 victory in over a year but now has an 0-8 record against Top 10 players since defeating Coco Gauff at the 2024 Indian Wells.
Powerful Shots Lead Zheng: Zheng`s typical playing style is effective on clay, where her powerful, deep forehands control the court. She utilized this shot to navigate a prolonged 3-3 game and secure the only break in the first set.
As last year`s ace leader on the Hologic WTA Tour, Zheng`s first serve remains a significant advantage, even on clay. She used a strong serve to save a break point and solidify a 5-3 lead, eventually taking the first set.
The first serve was also crucial in the second set, which Zheng controlled. It was decisive when her first serve landed in play—Zheng won 87.5 percent of her first-serve points. However, her second serve was more vulnerable, winning only one-third of those points.
Despite this, Zheng successfully landed enough first serves to secure victory without losing her serve (saving 2 out of 2 break points). Fittingly, her final shot was a powerful crosscourt forehand to win the match point.
First Encounter Awaits: Zheng`s next match in the Round of 16 will be against either No. 13 seed Elise Mertens from Belgium or Varvara Gracheva from France. They are scheduled to play in the final match on Credit One Stadium on Wednesday.
Zheng is guaranteed a new opponent, as she has never competed against either former Top 15 player Mertens or Gracheva before.
More updates to follow…
Jasper Hawthorne 
Dominic Ashworth