Olympic tennis tournament in Paris, final, Saturday, 03.08.2024, 12:00
It’s all about gold! The grand final of the women’s tennis competition takes place on Saturday, and the line-up is a little surprising. And yet, there is a favorite in this important match.
It’s the one that ended Angelique Kerber’s medal dream and thus her career. A Chinese woman meets a Croatian woman, the fans should be in for a highly exciting final.
Who do I see in front? I’ll tell you exclusively in my Zheng Vekic tip. As it would be the biggest success of their careers for both of them, nervousness is inevitable. For this reason, among others, I would opt to go for three sets here
It started with a fabulous 6-0, 6-0 result against Sara Errani that somehow didn’t really register. Qinwen Zheng has made it to the Olympic tennis final, and in quite impressive fashion!
After her brilliant start, she took Arantxa Rus out of the tournament with a 6-2, 6-4. So far, so good. Before the match against Emma Navarro was on the program, because here Zheng would have to really fight.
In the end, she only turned on the heat in the third set, winning 6-7, 7-6, 6-1. From a German perspective, I would of course have liked her Olympic journey to have ended in the quarter-finals, as she was up against Angelique Kerber.
In hot temperatures, the fans were treated to more than three hours of top entertainment. Kerber secured the first set in a tie-break and was already 4:1 ahead in the second
Then came the hour of the Chinese player, who, at just 21, obviously had more energy under the Paris sun. She tightened the reins, won 6-4 and shortly afterwards celebrated winning a tiebreak.
Four tie-breaks from two matches, three sets each – you should really avoid such a strain due to the weather. In the semi-final, however, she showed that she wouldn’t let that be an excuse.
Her opponent: Iga Świątek, undoubtedly the best tennis player at the time. The result: 6-2, 7-5, for Zheng! The world number 7 had beaten the absolute top favorite and could hardly believe her luck
Only three times has she won a title on the WTA Tour, now Olympic gold is actually calling. And lo and behold, she has already won over the bookmakers after her last performances.
She goes into this final with average odds of 1.40 to 2.75, but of course she also knows that small things will probably decide the outcome. She met Donna Vekic once in 2021 and once in 2023.
6-4, 6-7, 6-4, the result a year ago already shows how close it could be on Saturday. Donna Vekic is an absolute surprise in this final, the second time she has made it to the Olympics since 2021 (losing to Rybakina in the round of 16).
The Croatian started her matches with a 6-2, 7-5 win against Lucia Bronzetti, then won 6-3, 6-4 against Bianca Andreescu. She saved her masterpiece from Paris for the 3rd round
She triumphed 7-6, 6-2 against Coco Gauff, one of the top favorites for the title! A result that in my eyes is on a par with Zheng’s victory against Iga Świątek.
In the quarter-finals against Marta Kostjuk, she then had to go into three sets for the first time, winning 6-4, 2-6, 7-6. Her semi-final was over much quicker with a 6-4, 6-0 win against Anna Karolina Schmiedlova.
Now, of course, this one crucial question arises: Zheng or Vekic, who had the tougher opponents? Both had an absolute top star with them, so it’s hard to give an answer.
A look at the last French Open doesn’t provide much of an answer either, as they are currently playing on the courts at Roland Garros. Why? Quite simply because they both packed their bags after Round 3!
My Zheng Vekic tip
Qinwen Zheng or Donna Vekic, who will be the new Olympic champion on Saturday? Both have delivered an incredibly strong tournament. Zheng’s matches were a little closer, especially in the end, but she also showed enormous strength of nerve.
She knocked out Iga Świątek, while Vekic prevailed against Coco Gauff. Both are also almost the same height. A damn close race in which I can’t and don’t want to make up my mind, so I’m betting:
Two sets are not enough here!
