Zheng defeats You, Pareja advances in US Open qualifying

Playing her first Grand Slam qualifying event in nearly half a decade, Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen advanced to the second round of US Open qualifying with a 6-3, 6-2 defeat of Chinese compatriot You Xiaodi in 1 hour and 28 minutes.

Zheng's only previous experience of Grand Slam preliminary rounds came at the 2022 Australian Open, the first major event of her career. Qualifying and reaching the second round enabled her to break into the Top 100, where she remained until June this year. Last July, Zheng underwent elbow surgery; though she attempted to return in September, she managed to contest just two matches in Beijing before being sidelined until this February. In 2026, she has compiled a 12-13 record so far, and her ranking has fallen to No. 121 this week.

However, the No. 14 seed got off to a solid start against her countrywoman. You had won their only previous meeting 6-4, 6-1 -- though that match, in the 2018 Nanjing W15 quarterfinals, had occurred when Zheng was 15 years old and playing in her fourth career professional tournament. Eight years on, Zheng was in charge. She conceded just three points behind her first serve, broke You at the start and end of both sets, and fired 18 winners to her opponent's nine.

No. 205-ranked You, who is now on a seven-match losing streak dating back to June, notched some solid holds and won six out of seven points at net, but committed 19 unforced errors as she struggled to keep up with Zheng's weight of shot.

Zheng, a two-time US Open quarterfinalist in 2023 and 2024, will next face former No. 42 Clara Burel. The Frenchwoman is also on the comeback trail -- she suffered an ACL injury in April 2024 and was sidelined for the next 12 months. Now ranked No. 410, she defeated another Chinese player, Ma Ye-Xin, 6-4, 6-2.

Other notable US Open first-round qualifying results

• No. 284-ranked wild card Julieta Pareja, 17, defeated American compatriot No. 9 seed Kayla Day 6-3, 6-1 -- a reprise of her 7-6(5), 6-4 defeat of Day at the same stage of the competition in 2024, when Pareja was 15 years old and playing her first Grand Slam qualifying event.
• Alevtina Ibragimova, who made an impact on her WTA main-draw debut in Iasi last month by pushing Paula Badosa to a 7-6(5), 1-6, 6-4 second-round loss, was victorious in her Grand Slam qualifying event. The 21-year-old upset No. 15 seed and former No. 33 Rebecca Sramkova 6-2, 6-4.

More to come...