A stormy start to the 2025 Australian Open could not prevent last year’s runner-up Zheng Qinwen from booking her spot in this year’s second round, although her up-and-coming opponent certainly gave her quite a challenge.
Australian Open: Scores | Schedule | Draws
Under a closed roof on Rod Laver Arena, No.5 seed Zheng of China battled past powerful Romanian qualifier Anca Todoni 7-6(3), 6-1 in their opening-round clash on Sunday.
In her first match since a runner-up finish to Coco Gauff at last year’s WTA Finals Riyadh, 22-year-old Zheng needed 1 hour and 56 minutes to close out fast-rising 20-year-old Todoni, ranked No.110. Zheng was forced to save three set points in the first set before fighting to…