Friday, June 13

Sports Mole previews Saturday’s Queen’s Club Championships semi-final between Qinwen Zheng and Amanda Anisimova, including predictions, head-to-head and their tournament so far.

Qinwen Zheng and Amanda Anisimova will compete in the semi-finals of a grass-court event for the first time when they face off at the Queen’s Club Championships on Saturday. 

The Chinese No. 1 overcame Emma Raducanu in two sets, lasting one hour and 49 minutes, while the eighth seed defeated Emma Navarro in straight sets for her fourth consecutive win against her countrywoman.

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Match preview

While Raducanu was expected to outlast Zheng in three sets due to the Briton’s superior experience on grass, the Olympic gold medallist triumphed over her in straight sets to reach the final four in Queen’s. 

Entering the event without consecutive victories on the surface since securing wins in the first two rounds at Wimbledon three years ago, beating Sloane Stephens and Greet Minnen, the 22-year-old top seed needs one more win not only to achieve three victories in a row on this surface but also to progress to Sunday's title match against Tatjana Maria or Madison Keys. 

By defeating McCartney Kessler and Raducanu, the top seed has improved her career wins on grass to five, with the victories in Queen's putting the Olympic champion one win away from equalling her total successes between 2022 and 2024 (three). 

The world No. 5 previously expressed her desire to showcase the best version of herself on grass this year, and she is undoubtedly delivering thus far. 

With a shot at a final match in West Kensington on the line, Zheng, who has never lost to Saturday's opponent on the tour, aims to secure a third consecutive victory over Anisimova and face Maria or Keys. 

That task will be challenging, especially if their previous meetings serve as any indication — both matches last year extended over two hours and went the distance. 

Competing against Zheng outside the United States or China raises new questions for both women, who strive to advance to Sunday's championship match. 

Unlike Zheng, who lost to Coco Gauff in Rome, Anisimova has winning experience in semi-final experience at the tour level this year, having defeated Ekaterina Alexandrova in Doha en route to the WTA 1000 victory in February. 

Although the 23-year-old lost her most recent last-four contest to Sofia Kenin in Charleston, the three-time WTA champion holds a record of 2-1 in semi-final matches over the last 12 months, offering some positivity. 

After breaking her quarter-final hoodoo on grass — Anisimova had lost four previous last-eight contests on the surface against Belinda Bencic in Mallorca in 2019, Angelique Kerber in Bad Homburg in 2021, Simona Halep at the same event 12 months later and Halep again at Wimbledon in 2022 — the American has made strides by achieving success over Navarro. 

Now, the young American aims to go one better by securing back-to-back top-10 wins for the second time this year and only the third time in her career, aiming to progress to the title match in London.

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Tournament so far

Qinwen Zheng:

First round: Bye

Second round: vs. McCartney Kessler 6-3 4-6 7-5  

Quarter-final: vs. Emma Raducanu 6-2 6-4  

Amanda Anisimova:

First round: vs. Jodie Burrage 4-6 6-3 6-4  

Second round: vs. Sonay Kartal 6-1 6-3  

Quarter-final:vs. Emma Navarro 6-3 6-3  

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Head To Head

Beijing (2024) - Round of 16: Zheng 3-6 6-1 6-2  

US Open (2024) - First round: Zheng 4-6 6-4 6-2

Although Zheng leads this head-to-head 2-0, both encounters with Anisimova have gone to a decider, underscoring the competitive nature of their previous matches. 

The American player won the opening set in the US Open and in Beijing, only for the Chinese No. 1 to respond on both occasions and turn the matches around. 

Having previously met on hard courts, Saturday’s match will be their first on a different surface — grass — and not taking place in either player’s home country.

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We say: Anisimova to win in three sets

Both Zheng and Anisimova are inclined to go for broke when opponents leave a short ball, suggesting there will be few extended rallies on Saturday. 

While errors may accumulate, the fierce ball striking should also stand out in the semi-final, which the American player should edge in three tight sets to reach her maiden title match on grass. ID:575502:1false2false3false: from db desktop :LenBod:collect6792:

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