Zheng Withdraws From Wuhan With Shoulder Injury

Zheng Qinwen of China withdrew from the Wuhan Open on Monday, 12 October, citing a right shoulder injury, a day after she won the China Open in Beijing (WTA; Xinhua). The WTA said she was the first Chinese player to win the China Open.

The Wuhan Open is a WTA 1000 tournament, the top level of the women's tour below the four Grand Slam events. Its singles main draw started on Monday (AP via ESPN).

Wuhan is Zheng's home city. "I'm very sorry to share that I will be withdrawing from this year's Wuhan Open," she said in a statement released by the WTA. "Wuhan is where my tennis dream began, and the Wuhan Open is also where I made my breakthrough at the WTA 1000 level" (WTA).

She described a long stretch of matches since her comeback. "Since returning from injury, however, I have played a demanding stretch of tennis over the past months and a half, competing at the US Open, the Billie Jean King Cup and the China Open," she said, as the WTA ran the statement. "My body is feeling very fatigued after this intense run of matches" (WTA). The Billie Jean King Cup is the women's international team competition.

"I look forward to returning to the Wuhan Open next year and stepping on to the court in my best possible form," she added (WTA).

Zheng, 24, beat Mirra Andreeva of Russia 7⁠–⁠5, 6⁠–⁠4 in Sunday's final in Beijing (WTA). It was her first WTA 1000 title and her first singles title since Tokyo in 2024 (WTA). AP reported that she celebrated by singing a pop song for the crowd during the trophy presentation (AP via ESPN).

Andreeva, the Roland Garros champion, has also pulled out of Wuhan. She cited a change of schedule (WTA). She has risen to No. 3 in the world, AP reported (AP via ESPN).

Both were replaced in the draw by "lucky losers", players beaten in qualifying who get a place when someone withdraws. Camila Osorio of Colombia took Zheng's place and Anna Bondar of Hungary took Andreeva's (AP via ESPN).

The Beijing title capped a long comeback. Zheng reached a career-high No. 4 last year, but an elbow injury pushed her down to No. 160 this season (AP via ESPN). She entered Beijing at No. 54 as a wild card, a player given a place in the draw by the organisers, and will now return to the top 30, the WTA said (AP via ESPN). She reached the quarter-finals of the US Open before her run in Beijing (WTA). The WTA said she has won 13 of her 14 main-tour matches since losing in qualifying in Toronto (WTA).

"I've been through a very tough year," she said at the trophy presentation (AP via ESPN).

The WTA did not say how serious the shoulder injury is. Zheng is next entered at the Japan Open in Osaka, which runs from 19 to 25 October (WTA).