Agencies
Stuttgart
The Stuttgart WTA tournament started on Monday with a smattering of first-round matches on Monday as Zheng Qinwen made a winning debut at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix defeating lucky loser Alycia Parks 6-4, 6-4.
The 1 hour and 41 minutes for the Chinese set up a second-round meeting for her with No.1 seed Iga Swiatek.
The result avenged a 6-3, 7-6(4) loss to Parks in their only previous meeting, in the first round of Berlin last year - Zheng’s first ever pro match on grass. On the indoor clay of Stuttgart, the Chinese 20-year-old proved more consistent.
Qinwen was then peppered by reporters with questions about the controversy surrounding Chinese player Peng Shuai. The women’s tennis tour announced last week that it would return to holding tournaments in China from September having suspended operations there in 2021.
After the Court 1 contest, Zheng declared her wish to play “in the big stadium” for her next match. When told that her clash with Swiatek would almost certainly get that billing, Zheng replied:
“That’s perfect. I like challenges.”
Zheng and Swiatek squared off twice last year, in the fourth round of Roland Garros and second round of San Diego, with the Pole winning both matches in three sets.
Parks enjoyed her own breakthrough indoors, putting together a 15-match winning streak on indoor hard courts that culminated in her first Hologic WTA Tour title in Lyon two months ago. But the American had already fallen in qualifying this week to Tamara Korpatsch, and has now won just one of eight main draw matches since Lyon.
Meanwhile the in-form Petra Kvitova will not take part in Stuttgart after pulling out with a foot injury.
The clay event is part of the build-up to May and June’s French Open.
The Czech recently triumphed in Miami as the twice Grand Slam champion, 33, became the second-oldest champion in Florida. However, organizers in Stuttgart posted a social media video where she said she had to withdraw to rest her injured foot.
The tournament begins in earnest on Tuesday, with the likes of Coco Gauff and Karolina Pliskova in action.
Defending champion and world number one Iga Swaitek has a first-round bye and first takes to the court on Wednesday.
