Big-serving Alexander Zverev trounced home hopeful Shang Juncheng 6-0, 6-3 at the China Open on Saturday to set up a quarter-final clash with Novak Djokovic, while Elena Rybakina was stunned on her opener in Beijing.
The German top seed needed just 55 minutes to brush aside the Chinese wildcard, ranked 250th, firing nine aces along the way.
“Happy with the win,” the world’s second-ranked player said, adding that his 21-year-old opponent had been “dangerous” and had “nothing to lose”.
“Looking forward to the next couple of weeks,” Zverev said ahead of his tie with Djokovic — who has never lost a match in Beijing — on Sunday.
Zverev’s cruise into the next round comes as he trains his sights on the number-one spot currently held by Jannik Sinner.
The Italian won in Beijing last year but is not there this time around.
He said on Saturday that he would not play at next week’s Shanghai Masters either.
“I think it’s no secret that it’s a goal, for sure,” Zverev told reporters when asked about the battle for No. 1.
“I know what I’m playing for. I know I’m very, very motivated to play at the moment. But again, I have a tough challenge tomorrow, and that’s my focus,” he said.
(Photo by WANG Zhao / AFP)
Also in the men’s draw, third seed Daniil Medvedev eased into the quarter-finals with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff to play Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo.
Alex de Minaur, seeded fifth, and Andrey Rublev both needed three sets to advance and will play each other in the last eight.
Rybakina Downed
In the women’s draw, world No.1 Elena Rybakina could not regroup and fell to 118th-ranked Alina Charaeva in the second round.
(Photo by Pedro PARDO / AFP)
The 27-year-old from Kazakhstan was playing her first match since seizing the top ranking on her US Open win in New York, but Armenia’s Charaeva triumphed 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 in a clinical comeback.
“I don’t have words,” said 24-year-old Charaeva, who is making her Beijing debut.
“She’s (an) amazing player, and for me it’s kind of just dream come true.”
Wind rattled the closed-roof stadium, with both players serving as thunderous claps echoed over the court.
A supportive crowd tried to rally Rybakina back into contention, but seven double-faults ushered the momentum into the hands of her opponent.
“It was a very tough day,” Rybakina said afterward, adding that she had trouble with her foot and was feeling the effects of “a lot going on” following her New York win.
She said she would take a week to rest and get her foot fit for the rest of the season.
Charaeva faces Briton Sonay Kartal in the third round.
World No.4 Coco Gauff kept her composure to beat Camila Osorio 7-6 (7/4), 4-6, 6-2, overcoming shaky serving to survive the second round.
She next faces Chinese teenager Sun Xinran, ranked 582, who beat Spain’s Cristina Bucsa 6-4, 7-5.
Sixth-seeded Elina Svitolina and former champion Iga Swiatek, seeded eighth, also went through.
‘Stop Shouting’
Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen rebuked rowdy fans at her home tournament before opponent Anna Kalinskaya retired with an injury to give the Chinese player a 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 3-0 victory.
During a tight first-set tie-break, Zheng — a beloved figure in her home country — twice was heard telling spectators to “stop shouting” as she stepped up to serve.
“I thought the first set in particular was really difficult,” Zheng told the crowd in an on-court interview after the two-hour-and-22-minute match.
“Indeed, seeing some movement in the audience, my emotions were not very stable,” the 23-year-old added.
Chants for Zheng rang through the stadium before most points, and the umpire stepped in to warn people to stop moving around in the stands during play.
But Zheng declared: “It’s my problem, it’s my problem,” and vowed to adjust.
She next faces Czech player Marie Bouzkova in the third round.
AFP
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