On January 13th, Beijing time, the second day of the first round of the new season's Australian Open women's singles saw the determination of Zheng Qinwen's second-round opponent, who turned out to be Siegemund. The latter achieved a 2-1 comeback victory over Baptiste, though the hard-fought three sets took a significant toll on her energy, which is naturally beneficial for Zheng Qinwen. Additionally, Zheng Qinwen received another piece of good news: Wozniacka, the Grand Slam champion in the same 1/8th section, announced her withdrawal from the tournament due to injury.
Neither player was seeded, with American Baptiste ranked 88th in the world and German Siegemund at 97th. Whoever won this match would improve their ranking.
In the first set, Baptiste completed three breaks, while Siegemund had two. In the crucial tenth game, after Baptiste broke serve, she took the set 6-4. In the second set, both players continued their breakfest battles, with Siegemund breaking three times and Baptiste twice. In the critical eleventh game, after Siegemund broke serve, she leveled the score at 7-5.
In the decisive set, Siegemund grew increasingly fierce, breaking serve in the first, third, and sixth games to establish a 5-2 lead. After Baptiste fought back to win two consecutive games, Siegemund successfully held serve, winning the set 6-4 and achieving a 2-1 comeback victory overall.
Thus, Siegemund has been confirmed as Zheng Qinwen's opponent in the second round, with the match scheduled for January 15th. The exact starting time has not yet been announced.
It's worth noting that Siegemund previously lost to Gao Xinyu at the United Cup. If Zheng Qinwen were to participate, it's likely that this German player would also lose, as the difference in their abilities is quite evident.
Earlier, a match between Gauff and Kenning took place, which was a confrontation between Grand Slam champions. However, Gauff is currently on the rise, while Kenning is experiencing a downturn.
Ultimately, Gauff advanced to the next round with a straight-set victory of 6-3, 6-3, securing her sixth consecutive win since the start of the year. Kenning became the second Grand Slam champion to be eliminated and has now experienced four consecutive first-round exits at the Australian Open main draw.
Furthermore, Wozniacka, who shares the same 1/8th section with Zheng Qinwen and won Wimbledon in 2023, withdrew from this year's Australian Open before even playing, citing an injury. She has been replaced by lucky loser Dart. As a result, the main opponents competing with Zheng Qinwen for a spot in the quarterfinals are now only No. 12 seed Schneider and No. 18 seed Vekic, bringing Zheng Qinwen closer to the quarterfinals.