ROME (AP) — Zheng Qinwen earned her first victory over top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 6-3 on Wednesday to set up an Italian Open semifinal match against Coco Gauff.
The 22-year-old Zheng, the Olympic champion from China, had lost all six previous matches against Sabalenka. The eighth-ranked Zheng saved all five break points she faced and broke Sabalenka's serve three times to reach the last four.
Rome is the last big warmup before the French Open starts on May 25.
Alcaraz beats Draper
Carlos Alcaraz beat Jack Draper 6-4, 6-4 to reach the semifinals. He saved six of the eight break points he faced.
The third-ranked Alcaraz, who withdrew from the Madrid tournament due to an upper right leg problem that bothered him during the Barcelona Open final, moved well on the court, often took to the net and used his trademark drop shots and groundstrokes to the best effect.
The four-time Grand Slam champion, who also had a left leg injury, had lost to Draper in their most recent meeting in the semifinals at Indian Wells, California, in March.
Alcaraz rallied from 2-4 to claim the first set. A turning point then came in the eighth game of the second set, when Draped looked like he could force a decider. That game lasted almost 10 minutes and Alcaraz saved two break points before coming out on top. Alcaraz broke at love in the next game and sealed the match.
“The most important thing that I did today was not thinking about the shots at all,” Alcaraz said. “Not thinking about the fact that I was down, just trying to do the things that make me happy. On court I just tried to be aggressive, play good shots, drop shots, go to the net. That’s what I like to do on the court, and I think that made the difference today."
Alacaraz's next opponent will be either defending champion Alexander Zverev or Lorenzo Musetti.
