Zheng Qinwen opened her Nottingham campaign with a comeback against Maria Sakkari
Zheng Qinwen secured a place in the second round of the Lexus Nottingham Open after a demanding duel against Maria Sakkari, in which, after losing the first set, she found her rhythm on serve and turned the match around on the grass of the Nottingham Tennis Centre.
According to the official WTA draw, Zheng defeated sixth seed Maria Sakkari in the first round, or round of 32, by the score 4:6, 7:6(1), 6:4. The match was played on 15 June 2026 in Nottingham, as part of the WTA 250 section of the Lexus Nottingham Open. The organizer, the LTA, states that the tournament is held at the Lexus Nottingham Tennis Centre, while the WTA lists it in the official calendar as a grass-court event. It was one of the more notable matches of the opening round because two players with strong reputations met, but also with different challenges in the current season. Sakkari entered the match as the sixth seed, while Zheng was looking in Nottingham for confirmation of her return after a period marked by injury and a smaller number of tournaments played.
Comeback after losing the first set
Sakkari started the match better and won the first set 6:4, and according to the LTA report the decisive factor was one break in a set in which both players mostly held serve. Zheng, however, stayed in the match and in the second set managed to force a tie-break, which proved to be the key moment of the duel. The LTA states that the Chinese player, at 2:1 in the tie-break, strung together five points and finished the section with a forehand winner down the line, thereby sending the match into a deciding set. That run changed the tone of the duel because Sakkari had held the scoreboard advantage until then, but failed to close the match in two sets. Zheng looked increasingly assured in shorter exchanges at the end of the second set, and her serve allowed her to avoid additional pressure on her own games.
In the third set, the tight battle continued, but Zheng, according to the LTA, was especially effective on her first shot. The organizer states that in the deciding set she lost only six points on her own serve, which allowed her to wait patiently for an opportunity on return. It came at 4:4, when she converted the fourth break point in the game and took a 5:4 lead. After that she served out the victory and confirmed the comeback that brought her passage into the second round. The final 4:6, 7:6(1), 6:4 shows how evenly balanced the match was, but also how important Zheng's ability was to raise the level of her game precisely at moments when she was losing control of the score.
Serve as a support in the most important moments
According to the LTA report, Zheng hit ten aces against Sakkari, which was one of the technically most important elements of her victory. On grass, where the first shot is particularly valuable, such effectiveness on serve often shortens points and reduces the opponent's chance to enter long exchanges. Sakkari managed to find enough space for one break in the first set, but as the match progressed, Zheng allowed open opportunities less and less often. In the deciding set that segment was especially visible because the Chinese player handled her service games with less risk than in the opening phase of the match. Such stability created a foundation for her to attack the opponent's serve in the closing stages.
Sakkari showed during the match why she had been placed as the sixth seed in the draw. Her physical game and ability to find rhythm from the baseline gave her an advantage in the first set and kept her in the match until the final stages. Still, after Zheng won the second set in a tie-break, the pressure gradually shifted to the Greek player. In the third set Sakkari failed to create enough opportunities on return, while Zheng used one of the rare chances that could decide the match. In such a balance of power, the details proved decisive, above all the serve, concentration in the tie-break and the converted break point in the very final stages.
An important result in the context of a return
The LTA notes in its report that Zheng arrived in Nottingham as a former world No. 4, but also as a player whose return to tournaments had been made more difficult by injury. According to the same source, from her first-round loss at Wimbledon the previous year to her appearance in Nottingham, she had played only 16 matches, after surgery with which she tried to resolve chronic pain in her right elbow. Such context gives additional weight to the victory over Sakkari because it is not only a first-round result, but also a sign that Zheng can once again withstand a demanding three-set match. Ahead of Nottingham she did not have the continuity of results familiar to followers of the WTA Tour from her best periods. According to the LTA, in her previous appearance at Queen's Club she lost in the first round, so the success in Nottingham came as an important response after another early exit.
Zheng said after the match, according to the LTA, that the duel had been very tough and that Sakkari had played quality tennis. She also emphasized that she was satisfied that she managed to remain calm on the key points, especially because she had not been able to do that at the previous tournament. Such a statement describes the course of the match well: the result was not decided through long periods of dominance by one player, but through several points that changed the rhythm of the entire match. In Nottingham, Zheng played those points more decisively, especially in the tie-break of the second set and in the game in which she broke for 5:4 in the third. For a player returning after health problems, such a victory can also have psychological value.
Sakkari left without a final answer
Maria Sakkari came to Nottingham with the role of a seed and the experience of a player who had already known how to achieve good results at major tournaments. The LTA, in its preview and report on the match, describes her as a former US Open semifinalist and as a three-time quarterfinalist in Nottingham. That is precisely why the first-round defeat carries additional weight, although the performance itself was not one-sided and cannot be reduced to a drop in level. Sakkari had the scoreboard advantage, won the first set and was close to putting the match into a position in which Zheng would have had to play under even greater pressure. But after losing the second-set tie-break, she did not find enough space to attack the opponent's serve again.
For Sakkari, the key problem was that in the third set she failed to disrupt Zheng's serving rhythm. While she decided the first set with one break, in the deciding section she did not have the same effect on return. That allowed Zheng to focus on her own service games and, without constantly saving break points, wait for the moment in which she would press Sakkari's serve. When that moment appeared at 4:4, the Greek player failed to avoid the break, and after that she no longer had a chance to come back. Such an outcome is especially difficult in matches on grass, where a lost serve in the closing stages of a set often leaves too little time for correction.
Nottingham as an important stop in the grass-court part of the season
The Lexus Nottingham Open traditionally has an important role in the part of the season played on grass, and the official LTA pages for 2026 state that the event brings together a women's WTA 250 tournament and a men's ATP Challenger Tour event. The LTA also states that the competition is held at the Lexus Nottingham Tennis Centre from 13 to 21 June 2026, while the WTA, for the women's tournament in the official draw, lists the period from 15 to 21 June. It is a tournament that offers players an opportunity to adapt to the surface before bigger challenges on grass, with conditions that reward a good serve, reaction speed and precise first shots after the serve or return. Nottingham Tennis Centre, according to the LTA, is the largest public tennis centre in Great Britain, with 40 courts. Such a framework gives the tournament additional importance because it combines competitive and developmental significance within the British grass-court season.
For Zheng, the appearance in Nottingham is especially important because it comes in a period in which she is trying to link victories again and regain competitive rhythm. According to the LTA, it is her debut appearance at this tournament, so the victory against an experienced seed is a strong start. Grass is not a surface on which mistakes are easily made up for, especially against a player such as Sakkari, who can play aggressively from the baseline and physically withstand long exchanges. That is why the way Zheng turned the match around is as important as the result itself. After losing the set she did not change her approach in panic, but gradually raised the effectiveness of her first shot and waited for brief windows in which she could take the initiative.
The wider context of Zheng Qinwen's career
Zheng Qinwen had already achieved results that set her apart at the top of women's tennis. After the Olympic tournament in Paris in 2024, the ITF reported that she had become the first Chinese player with Olympic gold in singles, after defeating Donna Vekić 6:2, 6:3 in the final. That result remains one of the key points of her career and a reason why her return after injury is followed with special attention. The LTA also reminded readers in its Nottingham report that Zheng had been the fourth-ranked player in the world, which further explains the expectations that accompany her appearances despite the fall in ranking after injury. The victory against Sakkari does not in itself mean a return to the highest level, but it is a valuable indication that in demanding matches she still has weapons that can decide a contest.
In tennis terms, this duel showed how important it is for Zheng that her serve remain stable throughout the entire match. Ten aces, a good third set on the first shot and the ability to play the tie-break without major fluctuations are elements on which she can build the rest of the tournament. At the same time, the match also showed areas that remain a challenge, especially a slower start to the match and pressure when the opponent finds an early break. On grass, such details are punished quickly, so every next appearance will require the same concentration in the opening games. Nottingham, however, already in the first round offered her a test demanding enough for the victory to carry greater weight than an ordinary passage into the next round.
In the second round against Talia Gibson
According to the LTA, Zheng will play in the second round against Talia Gibson, who defeated Francesca Jones in the first round after three sets. This means the tournament continues for the Chinese player in a section of the draw in which the sixth seed Sakkari is no longer present, but a number of potentially awkward opponents on grass remain. The victory over Sakkari does not guarantee a calm continuation, especially because conditions in Nottingham are such that even lower-ranked players can be dangerous if they serve well and take the initiative early in the point. Zheng will therefore have to confirm in the next match what she showed in the closing stages of the first round: a stable serve, patience in exchanges and the ability not to lose direction after a poorer period of play. After the comeback against Sakkari, her appearance in Nottingham gained a much stronger competitive foundation.
Sources:
- WTA – official draw and results of the Lexus Nottingham Open 2026 tournament, including the result of the Zheng Qinwen - Maria Sakkari match and information on the WTA 250 grass-court tournament (link)
- LTA – official page of the Lexus Nottingham Open 2026 tournament with information on the location, dates, tournament format and Nottingham Tennis Centre (link)
- LTA – report on Zheng Qinwen's victory against Maria Sakkari, the course of the match, statements and the next opponent (link)
- ITF – official publication on Zheng Qinwen's Olympic gold in singles at the Paris 2024 Games (link)