China’s Dancing ‘Queen’ Delights Record Audiences

Zheng Qinwen takes a selfie with the crowd after winning her second round match at the China Open on Saturday.

Last year, even after her first major quarterfinal in New York, Zheng Qinwen made her China Open debut in front of a threadbare crowd on the Diamond Court.

This year, however, her first match in Saturday’s second round drew a tournament record 39,000 attendance in a single day, even with three days to go before the traditional holiday break.

The star power of ‘Queen Wen’, unleashed by Zheng’s monumental Olympic gold medal in Paris, is real and happening.

The National Tennis Center in northern Beijing is witnessing unprecedented attendance, with legions of fans, young and old, flooding Zheng’s practice sessions, even on weekdays. Her pre-tournament promotional events deployed a security presence rarely seen with any other player.

A first-come, first-served media ticket policy, normally only established for event finals, was activated for the first time on Saturday for a second-round match, due to high demand from a record number of journalists, photographers and broadcasters – more than 400 in total – covered the event on the ground.

The red-hot home favorite has lived up to her star status by kick-starting the first home outing after her Olympic victory.

Zheng served aggressively and hit hard to the loud roar of a packed house to beat Russian qualifier Kamilla Rakhimova 6-1, 6-1 in 75 minutes on the 15,000-seat Diamond Court on Saturday evening. She will comfortably advance to a round of 32 match against Argentina’s Nadia Podoroska on Monday.

The only thing that slowed Zheng down was a brief rain delay in the first set, during which the DJ played one of her favorite songs and the 21-year-old world No. 7 couldn’t help but groove to the beat.

After play resumed under closed roof, Zheng was back firing on all cylinders and finished the match in style with 22 winners and 10 unforced errors.

National hero status and the high expectations of the public – normally a source of pressure for most home favorites – seem to suit Zheng well, as she enjoys it and invites it as a source of motivation.

“I don’t think so,” Zheng replied when asked if the fervent home support brought more pressure.

“Maybe I felt that way when I was 19, crumbling in front of a cheering home crowd, but I’ve been through enough ups and downs now at 21, so I consider it an advantage,” added Zheng, who has 17 victories at has his name on it. of her past 19 matches, including her successful title defense in Palermo, Italy, her gold finish in Paris and a second US Open quarterfinal earlier this month.

“Especially when I’m feeling down, I see all the people supporting me. It’s a big confidence boost that gives me some extra energy,” she said.

The organizers of the China Open are doing their best to make Zheng’s homecoming a success, planning prime-time practices and matches and playing Zheng’s favorite tunes.

“I’m trying to be serious, but they were playing that music, I couldn’t control myself,” she said, referring to her light-hearted moment during Saturday’s game.

“I had to move with the music, sing with the music, because they were playing the songs I love. I was just curious why the audience wasn’t dancing with me.

“I like traditional Chinese music. I listen to it a lot. I understand that the China Open played the song because of me.”

Since her first-round loss at Wimbledon, Zheng has suffered just two defeats in almost three months, the first against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the second round of Cincinnati, and then against world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in New York.

“After the US Open, I’ve had a pretty good preparation for this tournament. I’ve put a lot of work into my fitness. I have high expectations for myself on the Chinese swing,” said Zheng, whose best Grand Slam performance was a final appearance at this year’s Australian Open.

“I made some mistakes after the Australian Open. I learned that I have to stay focused and composed when approaching each match. I will continue to do that, and let’s see if I can maintain a high level and be as consistent as possible could be.” “

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