AFP
China’s Zheng Qinwen kisses the winner’s trophy after her victory over Sofia Kenin of the US in their women’s singles final match at the Pan Pacific Open tennis tournament in Tokyo on October 27, 2024.
China’s Zheng Qinwen produced near-flawless serves to defeat American Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-3 and capture the Pan Pacific Open title on Sunday for her third trophy this season.
Zheng hit 33 winners and fired off 16 aces as she took the victory in an hour and 52 minutes under a closed roof after heavy rain interrupted the first set.
The 22-year-old adds the Tokyo title to her wins in Palermo and the Paris Olympics this year.
The first set was a tightly fought encounter without a single break of serve, with Zheng failing to convert five breakpoints, but she was much more clinical in the tiebreak and clinched it with a vicious forehand winner.
The second set played out much differently as Zheng held to start and broke for 2-0 when Kenin netted a backhand, before consolidating that break to go 3-0 up.
Kenin, playing with her right thigh strapped, refused to go quietly and forced Zheng to defend her first breakpoint of the match, but the power and precision of the Chinese world number seven’s serve proved too much for the American.
Despite the win, 2020 Australian Open champion Kenin can take plenty of positives from her performance in Tokyo, where she dropped just one set en route to the final and beat world number nine Daria Kasatkina.
Kenin, 25, also finished runner-up at the French Open in 2020 and reached a career-high number four that season, before injuries, illness and off-court issues saw her drop down the rankings.