Though Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen didn't walk away with the title, she left her hometown of Wuhan with her pride intact, because for the first time in a decade, fans witnessed a Chinese player in the final of the Wuhan Open.

雖然奧運冠軍鄭欽文没能奪冠，但她還是帶著驕傲離開了家鄉武漢。這是十年來，球迷們第一次目睹中國選手闖入武漢網球公開賽決賽。

It was a milestone moment for the sport in the region.

這是該地區網球運動的一個里程碑時刻。

On Sunday night, in front of a packed house at the Optics Valley International Tennis Center in Wuhan, Hubei province, the 22-year-old and No 5 seed battled relentlessly for 2 hours and 40 minutes. Despite saving two match points, Zheng fell to top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka, 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, in a hard-fought contest.

10月13日晚，湖北武漢光谷國際網球中心座無虛席。22歲的賽會5號種子鄭欽文鏖戰2小時40分鐘。儘管鄭欽文挽救了兩個賽點，但最終還是以3-6,7-5,3-6的比分輸給了頭號種子阿麗娜·薩巴倫卡。

Zheng's run marked a breakthrough Chinese season, in which she consistently shattered her previous records at WTA 1000 events. After making her first semifinal at the China Open, she went one step further in Wuhan, reaching the final. Her runner-up finish now stands as the best result by a Chinese player in the tournament's history.

鄭欽文的成績標志著她在中國賽季取得的突破，她在WTA1000賽事中不斷刷新自己的記錄。在中國網球公開賽上首次闖入半決賽后，鄭欽文在武漢更進一步，闖入了決賽。她獲得的亞軍是中國選手在該項賽事歷史上取得的最好成績。

"I'm happy to have reached the final," Zheng said after the match.

鄭欽文賽后說：“我很高興能進入決賽。”

"While the result wasn't perfect, I gave the best performance I could today. I'm incredibly grateful to the fans who came out to support me," she said, adding that she had been battling a fever throughout the tournament and had to take medication before the final.

“雖然結果並不完美，但我今天已經儘力了。我非常感謝來到現場支持我的球迷們。”鄭欽文透露，整個比賽期間她一直在發燒，不得不在決賽前服藥。

Sunday's match was Zheng's fourth meeting with Sabalenka, following encounters at the 2023 and 2024 US Open and the 2024 Australian Open, all of which Sabalenka won in straight sets.

13日的比賽是鄭欽文與薩巴倫卡的第四次交鋒。此前，鄭欽文曾在2023年和2024年的美網以及2024年的澳網比賽上與薩巴倫卡交手，薩巴倫卡均直落兩盤獲勝。

Throughout the final, Zheng struggled with her serve, tallying eight double faults and landing just 42.3 percent of her first serves. However, she managed to take a set off Sabalenka for the first time.

決賽過程中，鄭欽文在發球方面表現不佳，出現8次雙誤，一發得分率僅為42.3%。不過，她還是首次成功從薩巴倫卡手中拿下一盤。

Broken first in the second set and down 0-3 in the third, Zheng displayed remarkable poise, clawing her way back — perhaps a sign of her growing maturity after winning Olympic gold.

鄭欽文在第二盤先被破發，第三盤又以0-3落后，但她表現出了非凡的鎮定，奮力扳回一局，這或許是她在贏得奧運金牌后日漸成熟的標志。

"I played better today than the last time we met, and I've identified areas for improvement," Zheng said, rating her performance a modest "five or six (out of 10)".

“我覺得今天比賽起碼做得比上次好，我也看到了一些自己不足、需要改進的地方。”鄭欽文說，“我覺得還是可以給自己打一個五六分吧。”

"The silver lining is that with each match, I feel I'm getting closer. Next time, I hope it's not just a closer score, but that I can surpass her."

“值得慶幸的是，每一場比賽，我都感覺自己是有所進步的。希望我下一次不僅僅是接近，而是可以超越她。”

Since the Wuhan Open began, Zheng has become a major draw, with her matches consistently filling the stands. She has rewarded her fans with one stellar performance after another.

武網開賽以來，鄭欽文就成為了一個重要的吸引點，她的比賽一直讓看臺座無虛席。她用一場接一場的精彩表現回報了她的球迷。

Wang Tao, general manager of Wuhan Culture Tourism Group Sports Development Investment Co and co-tournament director of the Wuhan Open, said ticket revenue this year exceeded 2019 figures by more than fivefold. By the time the quarterfinals were played, over 100,000 spectators had watched the event.

武漢體育發展投資有限公司總經理、武網聯合賽事總監汪濤表示，今年的門票收入比2019年超出了5倍多。截至1/4決賽打響時，已有超過10萬名觀眾觀看了比賽。

"Following Zheng's gold medal win at the Paris Olympics, her profile has soared both domestically and internationally. This year, 46 percent of attendees traveled from outside Wuhan — a record proportion for the tournament," Wang said.

汪濤介紹：“在巴黎奧運會上奪金后，鄭欽文的國內外知名度急劇上升。今年，46%的觀眾來自武漢以外的地區，這一比例創下了賽事的最高紀錄。”

Chinese women's tennis players have made a significant impact at this year's Wuhan Open. In the semifinals, Zheng triumphed over 23-year-old Wang Xinyu, marking the first all-Chinese semifinal in WTA 1000 history. It was Wang's debut in the semifinals of a WTA 1000 event.

中國女子網球選手在今年的武漢網球公開賽上大放異彩。在半決賽中，鄭欽文戰勝了23歲的王欣瑜，這是WTA1000賽事歷史上第一場全中國選手參加的半決賽。這也是王欣瑜首次打進WTA1000賽事的半決賽。

"Reaching this milestone alongside Wang shows that China has exceptional players, and our level of play has advanced significantly," Zheng said.

鄭欽文說：“跟王欣瑜一起有這麼一個里程碑，這就說明中國有很好的球員，我們現在的水平比以前更高。”

Zheng's runner-up finish in Wuhan further solidified her position in the race to the WTA Finals, where she currently ranks seventh. This strong showing gives her a promising shot at qualifying for her first-ever WTA Finals, set to be held in Saudi Arabia in November.

鄭欽文在武漢獲得的亞軍進一步鞏固了她在WTA總決賽中的地位，目前她在總決賽中排名第七。鄭欽文的強勢表現讓她有希望首次晉級將於11月在沙特阿拉伯舉行的WTA年終總決賽。

Zheng's China season might not be over just yet, as she and her team are considering participation in the Ningbo Open, scheduled from Monday to Sunday in Ningbo, Zhejiang province.

鄭欽文的中國賽季可能還没有結束。目前，她和她的團隊正在考慮參加10月14日至20日在浙江寧波舉行的寧波網球公開賽。

intact

adj. 完整的；未受損傷的

shatter

v. 打破；粉碎

runner-up

n. 第二名，亞軍

poise

n. 沉著，鎮定

tally

v. 得分；合計