Struggles continue for Zheng Qinwen, dumped out by Ons Jabeur as Rebecca Sramkova also ousts Mirra Andreeva at Qatar Open

Tuesday, 11 February 2025 at 16:54

The struggles continue for Zheng Qinwen with the former Grand Slam and WTA Finals finaiist defeated by Ons Jabeur who has been going through a resurgence as of late. While Mirra Andreeva is also out of the Qatar Open losing to Rebecca Sramkova.

Qinwen has only played one other tournament this season and seemingly needs matches among the changes of coaches with Pere Riba unable to be there right now. Her only other event was a loss to Laura Siegemund in a 7-6, 6-3 win for the German. Today was a 6-4, 6-2 win for Jabeur.

Jabeur sees Doha as almost like a second home playing there and getting colossal support since the start of her career and that continued today. She spoke pre tournament about not being the same player who reached a Grand Slam final but still harbouring ambitions.

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In her match against Qinwen, she sealed 6/9 on break points and dwarfed a poor effort on first serve in particular from Qinwen who only won 46%. While Jabeur hit 72% to show a superb run of form which continues.

“I am more conscious of it, more confident,” she said. “And I’m trying to be less tough with myself because sometimes that doesn’t help. Definitely a better me this year, on and off the court.

“I’m definitely not the same player, but I believe in myself that I can be back and, hopefully, win my first Grand Slam. I try not to look back at the past but be in the present.”

“From Day 1, they have always supported me, even at 17 with no ranking,” Jabeur said. “I would trade a win in any tournament to win this one because it is really special for me to give back after what they have done for me.

“I want to really represent the Arab world very well and this is the most [important] swing for me. I know doing well here will help inspire the next generation.”

While elsewhere, Jessica Pegula was broken serving for the match but found a way through in a tie-break 7-3. Rebecca Sramkova also has continued her growth. She came from a set down to see off Mirra Andreeva.

It was a 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 win for the Slovakian who will now face Elena Rybakina for a spot in the Quarter-Finals. It is a fourth top 20 win for Sramkova with Andreeva at times throwing it away. She went 3-2 up to be broken by Sramkova in the decider. She went 5-5 and looked to hold and was broken against as Sramkova went to the finish.

Ons Jabeur continues her very strong start of the year, defeats #8 Zheng Qinwen 6-4, 6-2 to reach the last 16 in Doha.

Crowd goes crazy.

(Zheng has been struggling a lot...) pic.twitter.com/TJBxhLbph7
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) February 11, 2025

Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief

Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.

Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.

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