Qinwen Zheng on the verge of winning her maiden WTA title and breaking into top 20: Casey Dellacqua
Qinwen Zheng will soon make it to the list of champions on the WTA tour, former top-30 player Casey Dellacqua has predicted. Dellacqua hailed Zheng's talent, further stating her belief that the Chinese youngster is a player to watch out for on the WTA tour going forward.
Zheng is currently enjoying a career-high singles ranking of No. 24 which she earned after reaching the semifinals of the Abu Dhabi Open earlier this month. The Chinese beat the likes of Jelena Ostapenko and Daria Kasatkina in the process.
The 20-year-old reached her maiden final on the WTA tour last season, but could not get her hands on the title. However, the reigning WTA Newcomer of the Year's time will come this season, believes Dellacqua.
"I just feel like she (Qinwen Zheng) is on her way up, absolutely," Casey Dellacqua said on a recent episode of The AO Show.
"She was WTA Newcomer (of the Year) in 2022, she had a fabulous junior career, she's made a couple of WTA finals before. But I just feel like she's on the verge of getting her first WTA title," she added.
The Australian also pointed out the resemblance between Zheng's gamestyle and that of her countrywoman Li Na, who is the only Asian player to win a singles Grand Slam title. Dellacqua further hailed Zheng's talent before predicting that the rising star will soon enter the WTA top 20.
"She's a great player, her game was inspired by Li Na. She strikes the ball incredibly well," Dellacqua said.
"I feel like she's on the verge of not only her first WTA title, but also cracking the world's top 20. So look out for this fabulous, young, and up-and-coming Chinese player," she added.
Qinwen Zheng's Dubai Tennis Championships campaign ends early due to injury
Qinwen Zheng's campaign at the ongoing Dubai Tennis Championships ended early as she was forced to withdraw due to an injury ahead of her Round-of-32 clash against Liudmila Samsonova.
Zheng began the tournament with an impressive 6-3, 6-1 win over countrywoman Shuai Zhang.
Last week, Zheng stretched World No. 7 Maria Sakkari to three sets at the Qatar Open before losing in the first round.
Despite the recent hiccups, Zheng will aim to build on her run to the semifinals in Abu Dhabi. At the next Grand Slam tournament - the French Open in May - the 20-year-old will aim to better her Round-of-16 run from last year, which is her best result at a Major till date.