China’s Zheng fights back to reach second round at Italian Open

Zheng Qinwen competes during women"s singles first round match between Zheng Qinwen of China and Anna Bondar of Hungary at the WTA Italian Open in Rome, Italy, May 5, 2026. (Xinhua/Wang Kaiyan)

ROME, May 5 (Xinhua) -- Chinese tennis star Zheng Qinwen rallied from one set down to defeat Hungary"s Anna Bondar 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the first round of the WTA Italian Open on Tuesday, advancing to the second round after the hard-fought battle lasting 2 hours and 18 minutes.

Zheng had won both of their previous meetings. In this latest encounter, the opening three games went on serve before Zheng double-faulted in the fourth game to concede a break. Bondar capitalized on the advantage and took the first set 6-3.

In the second set, Zheng improved her first-serve percentage and raced to a 4-0 lead. Although Bondar responded by winning three straight games, Zheng broke again in the eighth game and closed out the set 6-3 to level the match.

In the decisive set, Bondar struck first, breaking early to open up a 3-0 lead. Zheng broke back in the fifth game to cut the deficit to 3-2. After the two players traded service games in the sixth and seventh, Zheng held serve in the eighth game and then converted her fourth match point in the tenth game to seal the victory.

Reflecting on the comeback win, Zheng said the match was of great importance to her. "Although I don"t want to always play three sets, I think this match was very important for me. Even when I was behind, I was able to focus on playing point by point and gradually turn things around," she said.

"I needed to concentrate on what I should do in the moment. Before, I was always thinking too much about what would happen next and what results I would get, but at that moment I returned to a state of just playing tennis step by step," she added.

Windy conditions in Rome also posed challenges. Zheng noted that she had been training mostly in sunny conditions and that the constantly changing wind direction on court made it difficult to judge her shots.

"In the final game, I had two backhands where I wanted to go down the line, but the ball flew too wide," she said. "At that moment, I should have played with the wind, but I felt the wind suddenly changed direction, so I was hitting against it. I quickly adjusted and realized that in that situation I couldn"t go down the line. These small details are very important during a match."

Zheng will next face 30th seed Cristina Bucsa of Spain.

China"s Yuan Yue fell in the final round of qualifying. Despite holding four match points in the third set, she lost to Switzerland"s Simona Waltert and failed to reach the main draw.

Zheng Qinwen celebrates scoring during women"s singles first round match between Zheng Qinwen of China and Anna Bondar of Hungary at the WTA Italian Open in Rome, Italy, May 5, 2026. (Xinhua/Wang Kaiyan)

Zheng Qinwen hits a return during women"s singles first round match between Zheng Qinwen of China and Anna Bondar of Hungary at the WTA Italian Open in Rome, Italy, May 5, 2026. (Xinhua/Wang Kaiyan)

Anna Bondar serves during women"s singles first round match between Zheng Qinwen of China and Anna Bondar of Hungary at the WTA Italian Open in Rome, Italy, May 5, 2026. (Xinhua/Wang Kaiyan)

Anna Bondar hits a return during women"s singles first round match between Zheng Qinwen of China and Anna Bondar of Hungary at the WTA Italian Open in Rome, Italy, May 5, 2026. (Xinhua/Wang Kaiyan)

Zheng Qinwen hits a return during women"s singles first round match between Zheng Qinwen of China and Anna Bondar of Hungary at the WTA Italian Open in Rome, Italy, May 5, 2026. (Xinhua/Wang Kaiyan)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)