China’s Zheng Qinwen completes Italy hat-trick, beats Jasmine Paolini to win first WTA title at Palermo Ladies Open
- Zheng beats local favourite 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 at Country Time Club to become 11th Chinese woman to win WTA singles title
- Italy proves a happy hunting ground for 20-year-old, who also won her first ITF title and first WTA match in the country
Italy is a land of firsts for China’s Zheng Qinwen. The scene of her first ITF title, her first win on the WTA Tour, and now her first WTA title.
The 20-year-old beat local favourite Jasmine Paolini in three sets, 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 on Sunday to claim the Palermo Ladies Open on the red clay of the Country Time Club in Sicily.
Zheng is the 11th Chinese woman to win a WTA singles title and the second this year, after Zhu Lin won the Thailand Open in February.
Clay has proved fertile ground for Zheng, who secured her ITF title on it in Cordenons in 2020 and her first Tour win in Palermo a year later when she beat second seed Ludmila Samsonova in straight sets.
“This is really special for me,” Zheng, who lost in the final in Tokyo last year, said. “This is my first WTA 250 championship. I will remember that.”
In the first meeting between the two, Zheng came out of the blocks firing. She broke Paolini twice to build a 3-0 lead quickly. From 3-1 up, she did not face a break point for the remainder of the set.