Zheng Says Too Much Respect for Sabalenka Hampered her in the Past

Tennis - Italian Open - Foro Italico, Rome, Italy - May 14, 2025 China's Qinwen Zheng celebrates after winning her quarter final match against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka REUTERS/Yves Herman
Tennis - Italian Open - Foro Italico, Rome, Italy - May 14, 2025 China's Qinwen Zheng celebrates after winning her quarter final match against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka REUTERS/Yves Herman
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Zheng Says Too Much Respect for Sabalenka Hampered her in the Past

Tennis - Italian Open - Foro Italico, Rome, Italy - May 14, 2025 China's Qinwen Zheng celebrates after winning her quarter final match against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka REUTERS/Yves Herman
Tennis - Italian Open - Foro Italico, Rome, Italy - May 14, 2025 China's Qinwen Zheng celebrates after winning her quarter final match against Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka REUTERS/Yves Herman

Zheng Qinwen finally got her first win over Aryna Sabalenka at the seventh attempt to reach the Italian Open semi-finals on Wednesday and the Olympic champion said she had perhaps shown the world number one too much respect in their prior meetings.

The Chinese 22-year-old had gone down tamely in all but one of her previous six encounters with Sabalenka, including in the 2024 Australian Open final, but she delivered a clinical 6-4 6-3 win over the off-color Belarusian in Rome.

The win will come as a huge boost for Zheng as she continues her preparations for the French Open, which begins on May 25.

"The few times I faced her in the beginning, I gave her too much respect," Zheng told reporters, according to Reuters.

"I didn't face her like a normal player. I remember I was going to see her in the 2017 China Open ... My father was saying 'Oh, you need to learn about her forehand, her backhand'.

"I think this kind of respect, it takes a while to treat her like a normal player."

Sabalenka had been on a nine-match winning streak on clay but Zheng said she was in her comfort zone on the surface.

"This is the first time we've played on clay," she said.

"I guess when I play on clay, I'm more comfortable because I've got great experience on clay.

"I was more patient. I'm happy with my performance and happy to make the step forward to beat the world number one."

Zheng plays world number three Coco Gauff for a place in the final.



'World's Oldest Marathon Runner' Dies Aged 114 in Road Accident

 (FILES) Indian-born British national Fauja Singh (C) waves a Hong Kong flag after crossing the finish line in the 10-km event as part of the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24, 2013. (Photo by Dale DE LA REY / AFP)
(FILES) Indian-born British national Fauja Singh (C) waves a Hong Kong flag after crossing the finish line in the 10-km event as part of the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24, 2013. (Photo by Dale DE LA REY / AFP)
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'World's Oldest Marathon Runner' Dies Aged 114 in Road Accident

 (FILES) Indian-born British national Fauja Singh (C) waves a Hong Kong flag after crossing the finish line in the 10-km event as part of the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24, 2013. (Photo by Dale DE LA REY / AFP)
(FILES) Indian-born British national Fauja Singh (C) waves a Hong Kong flag after crossing the finish line in the 10-km event as part of the Hong Kong Marathon on February 24, 2013. (Photo by Dale DE LA REY / AFP)

India's Fauja Singh, believed to be the world's oldest distance runner, has died in a road accident aged 114, his biographer said Tuesday.

Singh, an Indian-born British national, nicknamed the "Turbaned Tornado", died after being hit by a vehicle in Punjab state's Jalandhar district on Monday, AFP reported.

"My Turbaned Tornado is no more," Fauja's biographer Khushwant Singh wrote on X.

"He was struck by an unidentified vehicle... in his village, Bias, while crossing the road. Rest in peace, my dear Fauja."

Singh did not have a birth certificate but his family said he was born on April 1, 1911.

He ran full marathons (42 kilometer) till the age of 100.

His last race was a 10-kilometer (six-mile) event at the 2013 Hong Kong Marathon when 101, where he finished in one hour, 32 minutes and 28 seconds.

He became an international sensation after taking up distance running at the ripe old age of 89, after the death of his wife and one of his sons, inspired by seeing marathons on television.

Although widely regarded as the world's oldest marathon runner, he was not certified by Guinness World Records as he could not prove his age, saying that birth certificates did not exist when he was born under British colonial rule in 2011.

Singh was a torchbearer for the Olympics at Athens 2004 and London 2012, and appeared in advertisements with sports stars such as David Beckham and Muhammad Ali.

His strength and vitality were credited to a routine of farm walks and a diet including Indian sweet "laddu" packed with dry fruits and home-churned curd.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute on social media.

"Fauja Singh was extraordinary because of his unique persona and the manner in which he inspired the youth of India on a very important topic of fitness," said Modi on X.

"He was an exceptional athlete with incredible determination. Pained by his passing away. My thoughts are with his family and countless admirers around the world."