Zheng's odyssey back to form begins in historical Athens

On her most comfortable surface, and at a historic site for Chinese tennis, the stars aligned for Zheng Qinwen to try to shake off the slump in form that's been plaguing her of late.

The former world No 4 made it count, too, soaking up the energy from the storied host city of the 2004 Olympics to fuel her revival with a much-needed tour-level win at the inaugural Athens Open on Monday.

So desperate to slow her recent skid on grass and clay, Zheng, who's fallen to world No 135 this week after early exits at both Wimbledon and Roland Garros, has found her footing again on her favorite surface, with an opening-round upset win over Spanish sixth seed Jessica Bouzas Maneiro at the hard-court WTA 250 tournament in the Greek capital.

Very much the underdog, facing a higher-ranked opponent at the exact same venue where retired pair Li Ting and Sun Tiantian won China's historic first Olympic tennis title in women's doubles in 2004, Zheng, the reigning singles Olympic champion, had to dig deep to overcome a strong start by the Spaniard in a tight first set, before stepping things up to close it out, 7-5, 6-1, in just under two hours.

Zheng, who as a two-year-old in 2004, confessed to remembering little about the historic Olympic feat in Athens all those years ago, has long been held up as a fitting example of the tennis boom first inspired by that seismic moment, which was followed by Li Na's 2011 French Open win. Those achievements turned China into a modern mainstay on the men's and women's professional circuits.

Zheng said she enjoyed immersing herself in the special aura of the Olympic city and took pride in bringing back fond memories of the Athens Games, at least for a moment.

"I won the gold medal at the last Olympic Games (Paris 2024). And here, it was the start of everything. I think it's a unique connection, and I am happy to play here," Zheng said after beating the Spaniard to sign off only her 10th win in 20 matches so far this season.

"It's the first time I've come to Greece, and come to Athens. The city is incredible ... I am just happy to be here in such a historic city, and (I want to say) thanks to all the fans for being here to support us. I really enjoyed it."

The hard-fought victory got Zheng off to a flying start at a critically important tournament, despite its entry-level status on the WTA Tour, as the struggling ace goes all out to secure her place in the main draw of the US Open.

Only by going all the way and bagging all 250 ranking points awarded to the winner in Athens this week can Zheng climb high enough, to around No 104, to stay safely above the cut for an automatic main draw spot when it's made on July 20.

The hard-court stretch, the final swing of the season, is providing Zheng with a crucial buffer zone to re-establish herself among the elite after her lengthy recovery from the right elbow surgery that sidelined her for six months last year.

Zheng, who missed the US Open and most of the top WTA tournaments last fall, has few ranking points to defend for the remainder of this year, and is technically capable of scooping up a decent amount of them to bolster her comeback, should she stay healthy.

And her convincing form in a dominant display against Bouzas Maneiro, especially in the second set, bodes well.

"I am really happy with my performance today, especially beating an opponent that, I think, played incredibly well," said Zheng, who hit seven aces and converted four of seven break points to send Bouzas Maneiro packing on Monday.

"She played fast, and it was not easy. We both started very strongly, and, luckily, I held up the intensity more than she did." said Zheng.

"I am happy to have played such great tennis in the first round."

Next up for Zheng will be young Australian ace Elena Micic in the round of 16 on Wednesday.