Chinas Zheng Qinwen completes Italy hat-trick, beats Jasmine Paolini to win first WTA title at Pa
Italy is a land of firsts for China’s Zheng Qinwen. The scene of her first ITF title, her first win on the WTA Tour, and now her first WTA title.
The 20-year-old beat local favourite Jasmine Paolini in three sets, 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 on Sunday to claim the Palermo Ladies Open on the red clay of the Country Time Club in Sicily.
Zheng is the 11th Chinese woman to win a WTA singles title and the second this year, after Zhu Lin won the Thailand Open in February.
Clay has proved fertile ground for Zheng, who secured her ITF title on it in Cordenons in 2020 and her first Tour win in Palermo a year later when she beat second seed Ludmila Samsonova in straight sets.
“This is really special for me,” Zheng, who lost in the final in Tokyo last year, said. “This is my first WTA 250 championship. I will remember that.”
In the first meeting between the two, Zheng came out of the blocks firing. She broke Paolini twice to build a 3-0 lead quickly. From 3-1 up, she did not face a break point for the remainder of the set.
After holding serve to open the second set, Paolini came through the longest game of the match to break en route to a 3-0 lead. Serving down 1-0, 15-40, Zheng saved five break points in a nine-deuce game but could not convert any of her five game points. Paolini added a second break two games later after Zheng double-faulted on break point and took the match into a decider after 94 minutes of play.
Paolini was bidding to join Flavia Pennetta, Roberta Vinci, and Sara Errani as the fourth Italian champion in Palermo. The 27-year-old was now into her fourth three-set match of the week, having already knocked out the No. 1 seed Daria Kasatkina in the quarterfinals.
Zheng quickly put the second set behind her. With her new coach Wim Fissette watching on, Zheng broke first in the third set, aided by a stinging backhand winner that earned a roar of defiance. Having snuffed out Paolini’s momentum, Zheng methodically powered her way through the final set.
Serving for the title at 5-1, Zheng misfired on her first two championship points but sealed the win on her third with a flurry of forehands, punctuated by her final winner of the match.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tK%2FMqWWcp51kwLG70a1mrZ2eo7a0e8Crq6KbnJp8dH6RcW1vcV%2BYtaq6wKxks6CVo7Ruvcinrp6mXZi8rrzLnqueq12ewaK42Gafmqxdqb%2Bqr8pmmZ6ZpKh6q63SpqCnnV2lrrC4yKegZq%2BZo3qntdGsq2avpJZ6tbXTpZxmqJGhsrO5zg%3D%3D