Zheng Qinwen celebrates second WTA title with an impromptu karaoke session at Zhengzhou Open
- Chinese No 1’s rendition of hit tune ‘Economy Class’ gets mixed reviews, but she may have to get used to the high life after biggest title of career
- Zheng, who will return to top 20 in the WTA’s rankings, admits she forgot the lyrics but has a soft spot for the song as it reminds her of her roots
Zheng Qinwen celebrated with an impromptu karaoke session after winning her second career title – and her first on home soil – at the Zhengzhou Open on Sunday.
But fans joked the popular 21-year-old may be better off sticking to tennis rather than singing.
With her hard-fought 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 win over Czech seventh-seed and former French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova, Zheng became just the third Chinese woman to win a singles title at the WTA 500 level or higher, after the legendary Li Na and Zheng Saisai.
Chinese tennis seems to be on the up overall, with 2023 marking the first year in WTA Tour history that three different women from the country have won singles titles, after Zhu Lin triumphed in Hua Hin, Wang Xiyu won in Guangzhou, and Zheng claimed her first trophy in Palermo in July.
After winning the Asian Games gold medal last month, world No 24 Zheng suffered a disappointing first-round loss at the China Open to Elena Rybakina, but she recovered to secure the biggest title of her young career two weeks later.
Zheng sealed the victory with an ace, and then grabbed the mic for a singalong with the crowd at the insistence of the host at the trophy ceremony.