BEIJING -- Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen won her first title in two years by beating French Open champion Mirra Andreeva 7-5, 6-4 in the China Open final Sunday.
Zheng clinched the title on her first match point chance, serving an ace to Andreeva's backhand side, then fell to the court sobbing with emotion.
Zheng's ranking plummeted due to an elbow injury from a career-high No. 4 last year to No. 54 coming into her home tournament as a wild card and will now return to the top 30, the WTA said.
"I've been through a very tough year," Zheng said in English in a trophy presentation that had a touch of karaoke. She sang a pop song to roars of appreciation from fans in the arena.
A stellar 2024 saw Zheng reach the final of the Australian Open, win the Paris Olympics singles title at Roland Garros and take a fifth career title on the WTA tour in Japan in October.
As a qualifier at the US Open in August, Zheng showed her old form was back when she advanced to the quarterfinals, having twice rallied from 5-0 deficits in matches she won against Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek.
Despite the loss, Andreeva is set to rise to a career-high No. 3 ranking. She held three points to win the first set Sunday, leading 5-4, before Zheng reeled off 11 straight points to clinch the set.
"For sure today she played great," Andreeva said of Zheng. "It's also very nice to see her playing better and coming back."