Uchijima loses to Olympic champion Zheng at the Pan Pacific Open

Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima lost to Paris Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen of China 7-5, 6-0 in the second round of the Pan Pacific Open tennis tournament on Thursday.

Women’s world No. 57 Uchijima, Japan’s top-ranked player here after Naomi Osaka was sidelined with injury, tested the tournament’s top seed in the first set but was unable to maintain that level of play against her seventh-seeded opponent at the Ariake Colosseum in Tokyo.

“I like playing here because I reached the final two years ago,” said the 22-year-old Zheng, referring to her 7-5, 7-5 loss to Liudmila Samsonova of Russia in 2022.

“I’m the No. 1 seed in this tournament, which hasn’t happened often this year. Of course I feel a little pressure… but pressure is a privilege. I feel like sometimes pressure makes me play better.”

Zheng broke first in the third game of the opening set before Uchijima hit back immediately thanks to a good return. But after matching her higher-ranked opponent in the groundstroke battle, the 23-year-old double-faulted in the 11th game, giving Zheng her second break and a 6-5 lead.

The Chinese broke out at the start of the second set, while Uchijima failed to convert her triple break point in the next game. Zheng broke out again and took a 3-0 lead as Uchijima’s shots went astray before the pair’s first meeting ended after 1 hour and 17 minutes.

China’s Zheng Qinwen plays a shot against Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima during a second-round match of the Pan Pacific Open at the Ariake Coliseum in Tokyo on October 24, 2024. (Kyodo)

“Honestly, I managed to play better than I expected,” said Uchijima, whose mother is Malaysian. “She was a bit similar to me and tried to build her rallies around her forehand.”

“I also gained confidence because the quality of my shots wasn’t much worse than theirs… It motivates me to see someone from Asia playing at the highest level.”

Japan’s Kyoko Okamura lost to ninth-seeded Brit Katie Boulter 6-1, 6-2, leaving 19-year-old Sayaka Ishii as the only Japanese woman left in the singles draw after her win on Wednesday against Turkey’s Zeynep Sonmez.

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