Zheng Qinwen described her US Open third-round comeback win over Madison Keys as a “very dramatic match,” but that’s an understatement. The Olympic champion, who had to overcome qualification to reach the main draw, found herself 5-0 and down a match point in the third set against Keys. But Zheng held firm and reeled off seven games in a row to secure a remarkable 1-6, 7-6 (7-3), 7-5 victory over the 22nd seed and the crowd. favorite. Keys, who won the 2025 Australian Open, appeared headed for a commanding victory after closing out the first set in just 23 minutes. But Zheng, who is rebuilding her career after undergoing elbow surgery last year, recovered and secured victory in a tie-break before snatching victory from the jaws of defeat against the American. “Finally, a little luck is on my side,” said the 23-year-old. “I just tell myself that I will ever give up. Somehow, little by little, it just happened.” Tennis sometimes feels like a roller coaster. “You see a lot of times that people have a match point, but in the end we managed to come back.” The Chinese star is the first qualifier to reach the US Open women’s fourth round since Britain’s Emma Raducanu, who won the 2021 title.
