Chinese Tennis Star Misses Australian Open Main Draw, Zheng Qinwen Aims for Grand Slam Title, with a Prize of 16.1 Million January 7th, 2025 at 01:45 by Sports You and Me In the early morning of January 7th, Beijing time, the first round of the Australian Open qualifying matches saw Zhu Lin face off against Janjicijevic. Unfortunately, this Chinese tennis star lost 1-2 to her opponent, ending her journey early and missing out on the main draw. Due to her low world ranking, Zhu Lin did not secure a direct entry spot and had to participate in the qualifying rounds. The rules state that there are a total of three rounds in the qualifiers. In the first round, she faced Janjicijevic, and she could only advance to the next round by defeating her opponent. However, Zhu Lin lost her first match unexpectedly. In the first set, Janjicijevic quickly found her rhythm and took it 6-3, putting Zhu Lin in a desperate situation. Fortunately, in the second set, Zhu Lin made positive adjustments and responded with a 6-1 victory, leveling the total score at 1-1. In the decisive set, the first four games ended with both players tied at 2-2. In the fifth game, serving for Janjicijevic, Zhu Lin once led but unfortunately, her opponent managed to reverse and hold serve successfully. In the crucial sixth game, Zhu Lin made multiple mistakes, resulting in a break of serve and falling behind 2-4. Zhu Lin's mentality was visibly affected afterward, and she lost the following two games, ultimately losing another set 2-6…

Why can Sabalenka make a comeback in adversity and become the "Iron Lady" of hard court events? And why does Zheng Qinwen, who also possesses extremely high talent, repeatedly hit a wall against top players? Is it a gap in strength, or is it a problem with mentality and experience? The reversal battle in the Brisbane Station final not only allowed us to see Sabalenka's dominance but also made Chinese tennis fans re-examine Zheng Qinwen's new season trend. The Brisbane Station final seemed like an ordinary WTA500 event, but the atmosphere on the court was clearly a hard-hitting peak confrontation. At the end of the first set, Sabalenka trailed Kudryavtseva, and even the spectators in the stands thought the match was going to be over. Kudryavtseva started with a hot hand, constantly suppressing her opponents with precise baseline attacks and flexible net changes, which once made Sabalenka lose her rhythm. The first set ended 6-3, with Kudryavtseva taking the lead. By this point in the game, the suspense seemed to be slowly disappearing. But the greatest charm of the game is "until the last moment, no one can say they've won." In the second set, Sabalenka suddenly exploded, with powerful serves that completely disrupted her opponent's rhythm, and her forehand shots began to produce ultra-high quality. Although Kudryavtseva tried to adjust, she obviously lacked the confidence and experience that Sabalenka had in "handling big scenes." In the last two sets, the score was completely one-sided, 6-3, 6-2, and Sabalenka directly completed the reversal, winning her first championship of the 2024…

With the conclusion of the United Cup and Brisbane Station events, the new season's Australian Open has arrived, starting with qualifying matches on January 6th and officially welcoming the main draw on the 12th, which will continue until the 26th. This year at the Australian Open, Zheng Qinwen became a guest at the countdown ceremony and also took a photo with the championship trophy. Last year, Zheng Qinwen reached the Australian Open final but ultimately lost to Sabalenka, finishing as the runner-up. Despite this, she still achieved her best performance in a Grand Slam event. Returning to Melbourne after a year, Zheng Qinwen naturally hopes to claim the championship trophy. According to the Australian Open's prize money scheme, the singles champion can receive a record-breaking prize of 3.5 million Australian dollars (approximately 15.92 million RMB). However, there have been no changes to the point allocation for Grand Slam events. Among them, before participating in the Australian Open, Zheng Qinwen had 1,300 points deducted from last year's results, and now she must focus on maintaining her points. Final points and rankings at the end of 2024:‌ Sabalenka: 9,416 points Swiatek: 8,295 points Gauff: 6,530 points Paolini: 5,344 points Zheng Qinwen: 5,340 points Rybakina: 5,171 points Pegula: 4,705 points Navarro: 3,589 points Kasatkina: 3,368 points Krejcikova: 3,214 points Latest rankings after deducting points based on last year's Australian Open results:‌ Swiatek: 7,665 points Sabalenka: 7,156 points Gauff: 5,608 points Paolini: 5,069 points Rybakina: 4,503 points Pegula: 4,406 points Zheng Qinwen: 4,040 points Navarro: 3,231 points Hollins: 3,076 points Kasatkina: 3,033 points From…

On January 5th, Beijing time, the final of the 2025 Tennis United Cup kicked off, with top-seeded Team USA facing off against last year's runner-up, Poland, in a battle between two strong teams. In the first women's singles match, world number 2, Swiatek, lost 0-2 to American prodigy Gauff, failing to secure an early lead for Poland. This was also Swiatek's first loss in the United Cup over the past two years. After the game, perhaps due to the immense pressure of representing her country or the regret of not securing a crucial point for her team, the former world number 1 broke down in tears once again, unable to stop the tears from falling despite her teammates' attempts to comfort her. It is worth noting that this is not the first time Swiatek has publicly broken down in tears. Last year at the Paris Olympics, Swiatek admitted to crying for six hours after losing to Zheng Qinwen in the semifinals. At the time, Swiatek was one of Poland's few hopes for gold at the Olympics, but ultimately, the Chinese dark horse, Zheng Qinwen, took away the gold medal that Swiatek had been determined to win. In the women's singles final, Swiatek also wasted many opportunities to win. In the first set, both players engaged in a fierce battle of breaks. Gauff broke serve in the second game, but Swiatek quickly broke back in the third. After Swiatek broke serve in the fifth game, Gauff broke back in the sixth, and the two fought until the tenth game, where Gauff…

Today marks the opening of the new season's Australian Open, starting with the qualifying rounds and leading up to the main draw on January 12th, which will continue until January 26th. According to official Australian Open news, this year's total prize pool has reached 96.5 million Australian dollars, an increase of nearly 12% compared to 2024. The singles champion will take home a prize of 3.5 million Australian dollars, and even those who exit in the first round of the main draw will receive a prize of 132,000 Australian dollars. The Australian Open is the first Grand Slam event of the new season, but for two-time Grand Slam winner Krejcikova, it means missing out on participation. The Australian Open has officially confirmed that Krejcikova, currently ranked tenth in the world, has withdrawn due to a back injury. She emphasizes that this injury has been plaguing her since last season and has not fully recovered this year, thanking everyone for their support. As a result, Krejcikova becomes the first top 10 player to withdraw from the new season's Australian Open. Last year, Krejcikova won the Wimbledon championship, securing a spot in the year-end finals in advance. She was eventually eliminated in the semifinals by Zheng Qinwen, and with her fourth-place finish, she returned to the top ten rankings in the world. Now, Krejcikova is unable to compete in the new season's Australian Open due to injury and will likely fall out of the top ten again. As the runner-up of last year's Australian Open, Zheng Qinwen, after being deducted 1300 points,…

The Australian Open prize money plan for 2025 has been announced, with an increase of 11.56% compared to last year. The champion will receive 3.5 million Australian dollars (3.15 million last year); the runner-up will get 1.9 million (1.72 million last year), the semi-finalists will receive 1.1 million (990,000 last year), the quarter-finalists will get 655,000 (600,000 last year), the round of 16 will receive 420,000 (375,000 last year), the third round will get 290,000 (255,000 last year), the second round will receive 200,000 (180,000 last year), and the first round will get 132,000 (120,000 last year). The tournament starts on January 6th, with qualifying rounds from the 6th to the 11th, and the main draw from the 12th to the 26th. CCTV will begin live broadcasting from the main draw. A total of 14 Chinese players are participating, with 10 of them qualifying for the singles main draw. Wei Sijia, Zhu Lin, Gao Xin'yu, and Shi Han will participate in the qualifying rounds. Among them, Zheng Qinwen is the most prominent, as she arrived in Australia early and has been frequently attending various events. The Australian Open officials have launched a countdown promotional poster featuring Zheng Qinwen, and even published an article titled "Five Reasons Why We Love Zheng Qinwen." It's worth noting that Zheng Qinwen didn't have much popularity at last year's Australian Open, but this year the tournament is constantly giving her prominence, and she will also participate in the Australian Open exhibition match. Zheng Qinwen's attire during the Australian Open countdown event has sparked controversy. While…

Now, with just one week left until the start of the new season's Australian Open, defending champion Sabalenka participated in the WTA500 Brisbane Station as a warm-up event. She ultimately achieved an impressive five consecutive victories and won her first title of the new season in a dominant fashion. On the afternoon of January 5th, Beijing time, the final match of the WTA500 Brisbane Station began, featuring Sabalenka against Kudryavtseva. The latter was only a qualifying player ranked 107th in the world, far behind Sabalenka who held the top spot. Their abilities were not on the same level. However, Kudryavtseva demonstrated a certain level of skill by eliminating opponents from the qualifying rounds all the way to the finals, which indeed posed some challenges for Sabalenka. In the first set, Sabalenka broke serve once while Kudryavtseva broke twice, especially in the 10th game when she broke Sabalenka's serve to win the set 6-4. In the second set, Sabalenka made timely adjustments to her game, breaking serve in the 5th and 9th games and holding serve throughout, leveling the score at 6-3. In the decisive third set, Sabalenka played increasingly aggressively, breaking serve in the 2nd and 6th games to establish a continuous advantage of 5-1. With the momentum clearly in her favor, Kudryavtseva was unable to resist, eventually losing the match 1-2 to Sabalenka and missing out on the championship. Thus, Sabalenka secured her first title of the new season with a perfect record of five wins, marking her 18th career tour championship and her 16th hardcourt title. Winning a…

On January 5th, the prize money scheme for the 2025 Australian Open was announced. The champion of the singles event can earn 16 million RMB, and reaching the semi-finals will net 5 million RMB. Last year, Zheng Qinwen achieved a runner-up finish at the Australian Open. Tennis has always been a sport with high prize money, and this year's Australian Open continues to offer substantial rewards. The scheme indicates that the champion can receive 3.5 million AUD (15.92 million RMB), the runner-up gets 1.9 million AUD (8.64 million RMB), and the semi-finalists are awarded 1.1 million AUD (5 million RMB). Athletes who reach the quarter-finals will receive a prize of 665,000 AUD, while those who make it to the round of 16 will earn 420,000 AUD. The prizes for advancing through the first, second, and third rounds are 132,000 AUD, 200,000 AUD, and 290,000 AUD, respectively. The Australian Open begins tomorrow, but the main draw starts on January 12th and concludes on the 26th. Yesterday, Zheng Qinwen participated in the countdown ceremony for the start of the Australian Open alongside the tournament director, highlighting her immense popularity at the moment. Currently ranked 5th in the world, Zheng Qinwen is likely to reach the semi-finals if she performs normally. Last year, she made it to the final at the Australian Open, which was her first time reaching the final of a Grand Slam event. However, she fell short of the title with a 0-2 loss to Sabalenka. Yesterday, Zheng Qinwen expressed her determination to win the championship this year: "Last year,…

The first Grand Slam tennis tournament of 2025, the Australian Open, is about to begin. On January 4th, the Australian Open released a promotional video featuring Zheng Qinwen. The Chinese "Golden Flower" expressed her great anticipation for the 2025 season, stating that she will give her all and strive to play her best tennis, saying "See you at the 2025 Australian Open!" Over the past year, Zheng Qinwen has made significant strides in her career, achieving several personal and national milestones in Chinese tennis. It all began with the 2024 Australian Open. This year, Zheng Qinwen has chosen to start the new season with the 2025 Australian Open. To prepare for this year's Australian Open, Zheng Qinwen previously withdrew from the 2025 United Cup to gain more time for rest, recovery, and training for the new season. It is evident that she is highly enthusiastic about this year's Australian Open. On January 4th, the Australian Open released Zheng Qinwen's personal promotional video. In the video, Zheng Qinwen said that participating in a Grand Slam final for the first time at the Australian Open is of great significance, as it signifies that all her efforts have finally paid off. "This begins to change my way of thinking; I play more aggressively, and then I just need to stay calm and focused. I almost won a Grand Slam, but my dreams go beyond that; this is just the beginning, and there are still many areas where I need to improve," she said. Compared to a year ago, Zheng Qinwen not only holds…

Recently, the WTA International Women's Tennis Association's official website shared photos of Zheng Qinwen's new team making their debut in Australia. Compared to before, Zheng Qinwen's physique has undergone a significant change, drawing attention and discussion from fans and media. Zheng Qinwen has confirmed her participation in the upcoming Australian Open. Originally, she planned to participate in the United Cup. However, due to insufficient preparation, she officially announced her withdrawal from the United Cup. This has caused concerns about her condition. The United Cup and the Brisbane tournament are held around the same time. Players either participate in the United Cup or the Brisbane tournament, hoping to prepare for the Australian Open through these competitions. Zheng Qinwen had registered for the United Cup, so she did not sign up for the Brisbane tournament. Now that she has withdrawn from the United Cup, it means she lacks match adjustments. This is why fans worry about her state. Of course, it is believed that Zheng Qinwen has specific plans to reach her best form before the Australian Open. The Australian Open is getting closer, and Zheng Qinwen's team has also made a public appearance! Her new coach, Botini, has also officially appeared. Due to Coach Riba's need for surgery, Zheng Qinwen had to make adjustments. Seeing the photos, fans jokingly commented that Zheng Qinwen's physique seems to be tailored to deal with Sabalenka! Indeed, Zheng Qinwen appears much stronger, with more muscles on her arms and a bulkier physique overall. Fans have described her as bulking up like a double-door fridge! Additionally,…