After an enormous upset within the semifinals, the top of the Olympic tennis girls’s singles bracket is in sight. The gold medal will come down to 2 gamers few predicted could be on this place: sixth-seeded Zheng Qinwen of China and Donna Vekic of Croatia.
This additionally means the bronze medal matchup, presently scheduled for Friday, will function prime seed Iga Swiatek of Poland and Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia.
Zheng, 21, was thought of a reliable menace to Swiatek, however few noticed her straight units victory over the clay courtroom specialist coming. Swiatek had been dominant on the clay of Roland Garros, having gained three consecutive titles at Roland Garros, dwelling of the French Open. She was thought of the favourite to take dwelling her first gold medal, after a middling efficiency within the 2020 Olympics, earlier than she actually broke out.
However Zheng had different concepts, dropping Swiatek in straight units, 6-2, 7-5. Zheng was pushed to 3 units within the earlier spherical towards Angelique Kerber of Germany, and hadn’t overwhelmed Swiatek in six earlier profession conferences, together with two on clay. Zheng’s efficiency within the Olympics hasn’t come utterly out of nowhere although, as she made it to the ultimate of the Australian Open earlier this yr, her greatest exhibiting in a Grand Slam thus far.
Vekic, 28, entered the Olympics with a singles rating of 21 on the earth. She’s not thought of a clay courtroom specialist, and has solely made it so far as the fourth spherical of the French Open, again in 2019. Her greatest efficiency got here this yr and simply earlier than the Olympics, when she made it to the semifinals on the grass courts of Wimbledon.
She wasted no time in downing Schmiedlova on Thursday, taking her out in straight units, 6-4, 6-0.
Prior to now, Vekic and Zheng have confronted one another simply two instances, splitting the conferences. They’ve solely ever confronted one another on onerous courts, as nicely, whereas the clay of Roland Garros is untested of their head-to-head historical past.
For the bronze medal matchup, Swiatek will try to make up for what can be universally thought of a missed alternative. She faces Schmiedlova, a girl with extra expertise however far much less success on the highest stage than her. Whereas Swiatek has gained the French Open 4 instances (on these very courts) and the US Open as soon as, Schmiedlova has no main titles to her identify.
Schmiedlova’s greatest efficiency in a Grand Slam was a fourth-round look on the French Open in 2023. She has by no means confronted Swiatek in singles competitors. Their bronze medal matchup is about for Friday, Aug. 2, whereas Zheng and Vekic will meet within the gold medal match on Saturday, Aug. 3.
Ladies’s Olympic tennis medal matchups
Bronze medal match: No. 1 Iga Swiatek vs. Anna Karolina Schmiedlova (Friday)
Gold medal match: No. 6 Zheng Qinwen vs. Donna Vekic (Saturday)
