There will be a special atmosphere in Wuhan for home hero Zheng Qinwen when she takes to the court in the final at the WTA Wuhan Open against Aryna Sabalenka. Zheng hopes to win her first WTA-1000 title, while Sabalenka seeks her seventh. We here at LWOT offer our analysis and prediction for the final, but who will come out on top?
WTA Wuhan Final Prediction
Aryna Sabalenka vs Zheng Qinwen
Head-to-head: Sabalenka 3-0 Zheng
Sabalenka only needed two victories in Wuhan to ensure she would overtake Iga Swiatek in the race for the No. 1 ranking after the tournament. She managed that with triumphs against Katerina Siniakova and Yulia Putintseva before overcoming Magdalena Frech and Coco Gauff. Zheng reached the final by beating Jaqueline Cristian, Leylah Fernandez, Jasmine Paolini, and Xinyu Wang.
This has been a challenging matchup for Zheng. The Olympic gold medalist did not come close to winning a set in two defeats at the US Open and one in this year’s Australian Open. Sabalenka’s powerful groundstrokes overwhelmed her in those previous meetings, with the forehand-to-forehand matchup being especially difficult for Zheng. The Chinese player thrives when she has time on her heavy topspin forehand, but it becomes a weakness when rushed.
Is there any hope for Zheng? She did underperform somewhat in her previous matches against Sabalenka and could catch the Belarusian cold if she plays better this time. The 22-year-old will also receive passionate and vociferous backing from the home fans in Wuhan. However, that crowd support is unlikely to bother Sabalenka. She defeated the American Jessica Pegula in the US Open final last month, learning from her loss to Coco Gauff the previous year. Sabalenka proved she can handle partisan atmospheres on significant stages.
Zheng’s formidable serve needs to be working to have a chance. Unfortunately for Zheng and the home fans, Sabalenka’s powerful hitting will probably be too good, even if the Chinese player is near her best.
Prediction: Sabalenka in 2
Main photo credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
