Zhang Shuai avoided breaking one of the most negative WTA records and now she funnily remarked that she feels on the Beijing courts like Rafael Nadal does on the clay courts of Roland Garros.
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If you somehow missed it, the Chinese tennis player ended a 24-match losing streak last week after beating McCartney Kessler 7-6 (5) 7-6 (1). For the 35-year-old veteran, it wasn't only her first win of the season but also the first time that she ended on the winning side since 2023 January.
Had she lost to the American, Zheng would have come just four losses away from tying Madeleine Pegel for the most consecutive losses in WTA Tour history. Over 50 years ago, former Swedish player Pegel suffered 29 consecutive defeats.
After making sure she would not be writing negative history, it only got better for the current world No. 595 as pulled off one of the biggest surprises of this season and upset No. 6 seed Emma Navarro 6-4 6-2. Then, she also overcame Greetje Minnen 6-2 6-3 to set up a Beijing round-of-16 meeting against Magdalena Frech.
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"I think the big difference for me is the court, the surface, very different. At the China Open, this court I think like Philippe Chatrier for Rafa. When I'm on this court, I have everything. I mean, this court, because I grew up from Tianjin, Beijing, I have played on this hard court for more than 20 years every day. I think my tennis is so natural on this court, I can play my best tennis on this court. When some court is similar to this one, I can have good results. We always say, 'Oh, that's little similar to China, like Beijing or Tianjin, the court, the surface.' That's why I play also very well in Tokyo and Seoul. Yeah, I think that's the big difference," Zhang said.
Zhang: Just like Nadal on Philippe Chatrier, I feel so well in Beijing
If you go back in time, you will realize that this wasn't the first year in which the Chinese is having a memorable China Open run. 15 years ago, her first WTA win came exactly there after she beat Iveta Melzer. And just after earning her first win on the main stage, she also caused major upset after stunning former world No. 1 Dinara Safina in her following match.
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Over the years, she has also had wins over other Grand Slam champions and former world No. 1's in Beijing - she defeated Simona Halep in 2016 before also overcoming Angelique Kerber two years later.
After making the Nadal comment, Zhang was asked if she could clarify why she made such a comparison.
"I said when I'm on this court, like Rafa on Philippe Chatrier, feeling so good (smiling). I have no idea. I don't know why, but every time when I play China Open, I play so good, so well. Maybe because this court and my tennis is so working, like Rafa on French Open (smiling)," the former world No. 22 explained.
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Zhang returns praise to Coco Gauff
During her presser in Beijing, Nadal wasn't the only one who got a mention from the veteran home player. When the China Open started and the Chinese ended her losing streak, Gauff looked extremely happy. And it wasn't because the American wanted to just look happy for a local player but because she had a good reason.
Speaking to WTA Insider, the 20-year-old revealed that Zhang approached her following her 2023 French Open quarterfinal defeat and said that she was ready to bet on her life that she would become a Grand Slam champion. At the time, the current world No. 6 was going through a kind of a rough period but those words stuck into her mind. A few months later, she became a Slam winner at the US Open.
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Asked about Gauff, the 35-year-old called her "a good girl" and spoke very highly about her.
Not only me is a good girl on the WTA Tour. There are so many good girls. Minnen is a good girl. Coco is a good girl. They are good girls on the tour because we are very similar. We are considerate. We are heartwarming people. That's who we are. If you're a cold person, you ignore people, how can you have good friendships? There's no communication, right? There's no friendship," Zhang explained.
On court we can be aggressive, but off court we are girls. It's unlike what you see on court. We are not enemies, like what you assume, like soldiers, warriors. We're warriors on court. Off court we are not that aggressive. We also need comfort when we lose. We also need encouragement. When we are injured, sick, we also need help. So don't assume that we are all warriors. We are just ordinary girls.
