Qinwen Zheng qualifies for her maiden Grand Slam semi-final: Stats
Number 12 seed Qinwen Zheng reached her maiden Grand Slam semi-final after beating Anna Kalinskaya at the Australian Open. The former rallied from a set down and won 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-1 in two hours and 20 minutes. Before this tournament, Zheng lost her only major quarter-final at the US Open. She has now become the third Chinese semi-finalist in Grand Slam history.
A look at the match stats
Zheng won a total of 100 points and 42 winners in the match. She struck 10 aces compared to Kalinskaya's two. The former had a win percentage of 80 and 53 in the first and second serves, respectively. She converted six of her nine break points. Zheng (35) had more unforced errors than Kalinskaya (30). The latter recorded more double-faults (five).
Youngest Chinese player with this feat
As mentioned, Zheng is now the third Chinese semi-finalist in Grand Slam history. As per Opta, at 21 years and 108 days, she has become the youngest Chinese player in the Open Era to reach a Grand Slam semi-final. She broke the record of Zheng Jie, who qualified for the Wimbledon 2008 semi-final (at 24 years and 362 days.
Fourth Asian player to reach this landmark
According to Opta, Zheng has become only the fourth Asian player (male or female) in the Open Era to reach a Grand Slam semi-final before turning 22. Kazuko Sawamatsu, Hyeon Chung, and Naomi Osaka are the others with this record.
