Zheng Qin Wen Brings Olympic Gold-Winning Mentality to French Open

PARIS, SUNDAY – The last time Zheng Qin Wen stepped onto the clay court of Philippe Chatrier, Roland Garros, Paris, France, she stood on the highest podium with a gold medal from the Paris 2024 Olympics draped around her neck. She carries many memories from that moment as she prepares to compete in the same venue a year later.

This time, Zheng returns to Roland Garros to compete in the French Open Grand Slam, the highest stage of professional tennis competition on clay courts. The Chinese women's singles player is among those who will appear on the opening day, Sunday (25/5/2025), alongside Aryna Sabalenka, Elina Svitolina, Tommy Paul, Ben Shelton, and Jasmine Paolini (the women's singles finalist of the 2024 French Open).

The difficult challenges that every tennis player faces in the first round became even more daunting for Zheng as she faced the experienced player, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Although she has never won a Grand Slam, Pavlyuchenkova has been competing in Grand Slams since 2007, when Zheng was only five years old. Pavlyuchenkova also reached the final match of the French Open in 2021, where she was defeated by Barbora Krejcikova.

Therefore, Zheng had to undergo a challenging match even though she immediately took a 3-0 lead in the opening set and ultimately won with a score of 6-4, 6-3. Playing on the main court of Roland Garros with the roof closed due to rain, Zheng broke her opponent's serve in the second game, giving her a 3-0 lead. However, Zheng's advantage was halted when Pavlyuchenkova managed to break Zheng's serve, bringing the score to 4-4.

Realizing the situation, Zheng was highly focused when in the receiving position after leading 5-4. She secured the first set through a love game (40-0) while Pavlyuchenkova was serving. Zheng maintained her momentum in the second set, ultimately winning the first round after competing for one hour and 22 minutes.

During a session of interviews in front of the audience at the stadium, the question about the Olympic gold medal won at the location where Zheng stood was inevitable. "It feels amazing to be a champion at the Olympics, and it has been the best experience of my life so far. I will carry the mentality of a gold medalist throughout this tournament," said Zheng.

Zheng's journey to become the first Chinese tennis player to win an Olympic gold medal was significantly influenced by her victory over Iga Swiatek in the semifinals. She defeated Swiatek, who was the most favored player to win gold due to her four championship titles from the French Open. The fourth title at Roland Garros was even secured just two months before competing in the Olympics.

The victory with a score of 6-2, 7-5 marks the first for Zheng after having lost in six previous encounters against Swiatek. Therefore, this victory can be considered a key to Zheng's success in securing gold for China.

Zheng will face Emiliana Arango in the second round. Arango won against one of the debutants in the main draw of the French Open, Alexandra Eala.

The mentality of a gold medalist is essential, especially when facing Sabalenka in the quarterfinals of the French Open. After losing six times, Zheng gained positive momentum through her victory in their most recent encounter at the quarterfinals of the WTA 1000 in Rome, two weeks prior to the French Open.

Zheng and Sabalenka have the opportunity to meet for the first time at Roland Garros, at least after they both won their opening matches. Sabalenka overcame her first hurdle with a decisive score of 6-1, 6-0 against her good friend, Kamila Rakhimova.

However, both tennis players must first focus on their immediate challenges. Zheng will face Emiliana Arango in the second round. Arango won against one of the debutants in the main draw of the French Open, Alexandra Eala, with a score of 6-0, 2-6, 6-3. Meanwhile, Sabalenka will confront Jil Teichmann.

Eala is a 20-year-old Filipino tennis player who is on her way to competing at the highest level. The 2020 US Open junior champion achieved her best result in the professional arena by reaching the semifinals of the WTA 1000 in Miami in March. However, Eala has yet to win a main draw match at the Grand Slam level.

In the men's singles competition, victory in the first round on the first day was achieved by Paul, who is the 12th seed. The American tennis player defeated Elmer Moller with a score of 6-7 (7), 6-2, 6-3, 6-1.

The second day of the tournament, Monday (26/5), will mark the opening day for the defending champions, Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz. Swiatek will face Rebecca Sramkova, while Alcaraz will compete against qualifier Giulio Zeppieri.

The competition on Monday will also be marked by several matches that are predicted to be closely contested, one of which is the meeting between Naomi Osaka and Paula Badosa. Badosa, who is seeded tenth, has been plagued by back injuries this year. However, she also experienced her best moment when she reached the semifinals of a Grand Slam for the first time, at the Australian Open.

Meanwhile, Osaka gained positive momentum after winning her first title on clay courts, albeit from a lower-level tournament, WTA 125. She became the champion in Saint Malo, France, from April 28 to May 4.

Another potential "hot match" in the first round is in the men's singles, namely the match between Holger Rune (the tenth seed) against Roberto Bautista Agut and Casper Ruud (7) versus Albert Ramos-Vinolas. Agut and Ramos-Vinolas are not seeded players (Ramos-Vinolas even came through the qualifiers), but they are Spanish players accustomed to playing on clay courts.

In addition to some matches of the first round, the first day of the tournament also featured a tribute event for former tennis player Rafael Nadal. The championship organizing committee held the event following three matches in the afternoon session (midnight Indonesia time) at the Philippe Chatrier Court.

Tribute was paid to Nadal as the tennis player with the most titles at the French Open, having won 14 times. This event was held for the first time this year as Nadal is still competing in the French Open 2024.

At that time, the Director of the French Open, Amelie Mauresmo, and her team had prepared a farewell event for Nadal due to rumors that he would retire in 2024. However, Nadal declined the organization of the event as he has not yet confirmed the end of his career.

The holder of 22 Grand Slam titles finally bid farewell to competition in November after representing Spain in the men's team championship of the Davis Cup. The organizers of the French Open ultimately arranged an event for Nadal with the aim of honoring him as a legend at the French Open.

Thousands of tennis fans flocked to the Roland Garros tennis complex since Sunday morning, despite the overcast weather and eventual rain accompanied by strong winds. They and the tournament organizers welcomed Nadal's return to Roland Garros, although not for competition.

The committee kept the details of the event confidential, but Mauresmo stated that Nadal requested the event to be held simply. One of Nadal's toughest competitors during his career, Novak Djokovic, mentioned that other players in the "Big Four" would be present to honor Nadal.

The nickname was given by tennis fans to refer to the four male players who dominated high-level competition for about 15 years, since 2005, namely Nadal, Djokovic, Andy Murray, and Roger Federer. Nadal, Djokovic, and Murray were also present when Federer bid farewell to professional competition at the Laver Cup in September 2022. (afp/reuters)