(Football news) Zheng defeated Yastremska in the duel of the first major semifinalist, while Sabalenka avenged her defeat of Gauff to maintain her hopes of winning two titles in a row.
In Thursday’s historic match, the incredible journey of either Ukrainian qualifier Yastremska or Chinese trailblazer Zheng was destined to finish. This was the first time the two players had faced off against one another on the WTA Tour and in a major semifinal.
But Zheng overcame the early jitters to win 6-4 6-4, winning 76% of the points with her opening service, saving eight of the ten break points Yastremska managed to create, and adding four more aces, including one on match point, to her incredible total.
The 12th seed – whose total of 48 aces at the 2024 Australian Open is by far and away the most of any women’s singles player – also benefitted from an injury to Yastremska late in the first set, but she forced the qualifier into mistakes throughout their one-hour and 42-minute contest and was a deserved winner under the night sky.
By closing the book on the Yastremska fairytale, Zheng is now just the second Chinese player to reach a Grand Slam singles final after Li Na, who coincidentally triumphed at the Australian Open 10 years ago, and Saturday’s showpiece will mark her fifth overall final on the WTA Tour.
Zheng has already bested one Grand Slam champion en route to a piece of silverware, defeating Barbora Krejcikova in October’s Zhengzhou Open for her second top-level crown, but the 21-year-old is yet to test her mettle against a seeded player at this year’s Melbourne Slam.
