On January 14, in the first round of the Australian Open men's singles, Chinese player Zhang Zhizhen challenged the 13th seeded player Rune. Despite winning the first set, Zhang Zhizhen ultimately lost 2-3 and was unable to advance to the second round of the Australian Open.
In this match, Zhang Zhizhen had a perfect start. In the first set, he broke serve first and took a 3-1 lead. Subsequently, he won the first set 6-4. In the second and third sets, Zhang Zhizhen was broken once each, while Rune won two consecutive sets 6-4 and 6-3.
In the crucial fourth set, with no room for retreat, Zhang Zhizhen held up under pressure and broke serve in the eighth game, winning the set 6-4. Both sides entered the fifth set for the final showdown.
In the last set, Zhang Zhizhen played tenaciously. After being broken first by his opponent, he immediately broke back to level the score at 4-4. Unfortunately, Zhang Zhizhen lost the crucial tenth game. In the end, he lost the fifth set 4-6 and the match with a total score of 2-3.
Throughout the match, Zhang Zhizhen performed strongly, serving 21 aces and earning the respect of both his opponent and the fans. He was just a little short of advancing to the second round of the Australian Open. As the saying goes, the smaller the gap, the greater the disappointment, and many fans felt extremely sorry for Zhang Zhizhen.
In this year's Australian Open, a total of three male singles players participated, namely Zhang Zhizhen, Buyunchaokete, and Shang Juncheng. Previously, Buyunchaokete was swept by his opponent, while Shang Juncheng withdrew from the tournament early due to injury yesterday.
Thus far, all Chinese male singles players have been eliminated in this Australian Open journey. In contrast, three female singles players from China have advanced to the second round, namely Zheng Qinwen, Wang Xiyu, and Wang Yafan.