(Video) Qinwen Zheng has an intense argument with Leylah Fernandez after confronting her camp in Wuhan
Qinwen Zheng criticized Leylah Fernandez's camp for being too vocal before getting into a confrontation with the chair umpire.
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Qinwen Zheng and Leylah Fernandez (via Imago/ screengrab Reddit)
Tensions reached a boiling point during the Round of 16 match on Thursday at the Wuhan Open between Qinwen Zheng and Leylah Fernandez. Zheng, the recently crowned Olympic singles gold medalist, appeared to have had a verbal exchange with Fernandez’s camp.
Fernandez reacted quickly and angrily confronted Zheng about the issue. However, the chair umpire defused the situation by advising the Chinese player to speak to her if she found anything problematic.
This incident occurred in the third game of the second set and proved pivotal, as Fernandez’s form completely dropped afterward. The Canadian won only two more games in the entire match and received a bagel in the third set.
The debate around on-court coaching and exchanges has been reignited, especially after the news about Elena Rybakina came to light. The Kazakh player reportedly experienced mental and psychological challenges due to her former coach, Stefano Vukov, and his aggressive coaching style. The two parted ways last month.
Qinwen Zheng’s remarkable Asian swing continues as she reaches Wuhan semifinal
After her Olympic gold medal win, Qinwen Zheng repeatedly emphasized the importance of the Asian swing. The 22-year-old was optimistic about playing her best tennis in front of her home fans, who were eager to celebrate her historic achievement in Paris. Zheng is looking to win her third title of the season after earlier success at the Palermo Ladies Open and the Paris Olympics.
So far in the Asian swing, despite not winning in Beijing, Zheng has looked impressive. The World No. 7 has reached the semifinals of both the Beijing and Wuhan Opens. In Beijing, she lost to Karolina Muchova in the last four.
At the Wuhan Open, she advanced to the semifinals after a big win over third seed Jasmine Paolini. The Chinese player has dropped just one set in the tournament so far, which came in a heated clash against Leylah Fernandez in the Round of 16.
In the semi-finals, she will be squaring up against her local-native Wang Xinyu. Hence, this is another great piece of news for Chinese tennis as it is confirmed that they will have a Chinese finalist at the Wuhan Open.
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Fahad Hamid
(629 Articles Published)