Olympic champion Zheng beats Andreeva in China Open final for first title win in 2 years

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 on Sunday.Zheng clinched with 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 160 this season. She was No. 54 coming into her home tournament as a wild card this week 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, then in October take a fifth career title on the WTA tour in Japan.As a qualifier at the U.S. Open in August, Zheng showed her old form was back when she advanced to the quarterfinal