The journey to defend the title continues, Sabalenka openly states Zheng Qinwen is returning to the top!

“What level has Zheng Qinwen reached since returning from injury?”

“I feel she is currently making her way back to the top tier, definitely top-level. Perhaps her form today wasn’t exceptional, but I can see she’s putting in great effort. It’s delightful to see her return healthy and restart her journey.”

This was Sabalenka’s statement after advancing to the women’s singles quarterfinals at this Miami tournament, responding to journalists’ questions. In the previous round, the top seed and defending champion defeated Chinese top player Zheng Qinwen in straight sets, moving further along her title defense path.

This marks Zheng Qinwen’s second consecutive year being eliminated by Sabalenka at this event, though last year’s exit occurred in the quarterfinals, while this year it came one round earlier.

Looking at the entire match, Zheng Qinwen’s first-serve success rate lagged significantly behind Sabalenka’s, standing at only 40%, while Sabalenka reached 66%. However, Zheng Qinwen’s first-serve winning rate was 83%, and she blasted 8 aces throughout the match. From this data, Zheng Qinwen’s tactical intent to seize initiative through powerful serving was quite evident.

Unfortunately, Zheng Qinwen’s efficiency on break points was lower. Although both players earned 5 break points in the match, Zheng Qinwen converted only one of them.

Meanwhile, regarding such match statistics, many fans questioned why Zheng Qinwen often experiences unstable serving against Sabalenka. Partly, this stems from opponent pressure: Sabalenka holds advantages in both playing style and mentality. Zheng Qinwen, aiming to use aggressive serving to find breakthroughs, naturally accepts higher risks.

Near the match’s end, Zheng Qinwen’s daring second serves showed her determination. Even though she didn’t win this time, Zheng Qinwen surely gained more experience and will have opportunities to defeat Sabalenka again in the future.

After the North American Sunshine Double events conclude, Zheng Qinwen, following her tournament schedule, will commence the entirely new 2026 clay season. Soon, she faces considerable points to defend (938 points). Last year, she reached the semifinals in Rome, earning 390 points, and made the quarterfinals at Roland Garros, securing 430 points. These two tournaments are major events where she primarily needs to score.

For Sabalenka, after reaching her 32nd WTA 1000 quarterfinal, she will compete against the tournament’s dark horse Baptiste for a precious semifinal spot. Baptiste, as a non-seeded player this year in Miami, has successively eliminated several top players including Svitolina and Ostapenko. Baptiste is also the sole non-seeded player among the women’s singles quarterfinalists in Miami this year.（Source: Tennis Home Author: Barbie）