Zheng Qinwen is defeated by Aryna Sabalenka 3-6, 7-5, 3-6 in the Wuhan Open final on Sunday. Photo: Courtesy of People's Daily

China's tennis ace Zheng Qinwen fell short of beating the reigning champion Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus 3-6, 7-5, 3-6 at the Wuhan Open final on Sunday. 

Despite the loss, Zheng's participation in the WTA 1000 event is still significant as she is the first Chinese player to take part in the event since Li Na reached a WTA 1000 final in 2014. Both Li and Zheng grew up in Central China's Hubei Province before turning pro.

Zheng's runner-up finish at the Wuhan Open event and her semifinal finish earlier on at the China Open in Beijing have boosted her chances of qualifying for the year-end WTA ­Finals set to be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in November. 

"I'm very happy to have made it to the final of the Wuhan Open although the result wasn't exactly what I hoped for, I gave my best performance today, especially considering I wasn't feeling well physically," Zheng said after the match. 

"Making it to my first WTA 1000 final was not easy, especially since it happened in Wuhan, where my dream began. It's a pity that I couldn't bring home the trophy this time, but I hope that one day in my career, I'll be able to achieve that dream."

Sabalenka got into the groove right from the beginning to secure the first set with aggressive baseline shots. Zheng displayed her fighting spirit and forced the match into the third set, but the 22-year-old failed to maintain the momentum and so missed her first WTA 1000 title. 

Two-time Grand Slam champion Li did not win her 2014 WTA 1000 event final at the Miami Open either, as she was defeated by then world No.1 Serena Williams. 

The world No.7 has continued to set new WTA 1000 milestones in the Asian swing this year. As an Olympic champion, Zheng achieved her first WTA 1000 semifinal in the China Open earlier this month, and she went one better this week in Wuhan.

After a first-round bye, Zheng beat Jaqueline Cristian, Leylah Fernandez and world No.6 Jasmine Paolini of Italy before powering past her compatriot Wang Xinyu in the semifinal.

The match was the first-ever all-Chinese semifinal at a WTA 1000 event. It not only marked a landmark moment in Chinese tennis history but also showed the depth of talent emerging from China, as Zheng and Wang both performed impressively throughout the tournament.

Sabalenka won the previous two editions of the Wuhan Open in 2018 and 2019 before the event was forced into a five-year hiatus due to the ­COVID-19 pandemic. 

This was the third meeting between Sabalenka and Zheng in 2024. The world No.2 defeated Zheng 6-3, 6-2 in the Australian Open final in January. The Belarusian was the winner again when they met in the US Open quarterfinals in September. 

However, Sunday's match saw Sabalenka conceding one set to Zheng, the first time in the duo's four meetings to date, which experts suggest is proof that Zheng is improving her performance against world-leading athletes. 

Next, Zheng will turn to the ­Ningbo Open, which is set to be held in East China's Zhejiang Province from Monday to Sunday. 

As seven of the eight berths have been confirmed for the WTA Finals, Zheng is competing against Emma Navarro of the US for the last remaining spot for the year-ender. Zheng is currently leading Navarro in the WTA live race ranking with 543 points.

A deep run in the penultimate WTA 500 tournament of the season will further build on her point lead to qualify for the WTA Finals.