In the arena of the 2024 Wimbledon Tennis Championships, Chinese tennis star Zhu Lin shone brightly. For the first time, she successfully advanced to the third round at Wimbledon, demonstrating resilience and strength on this field filled with history and glory, playing eye-catching tennis.
In her opening match at Wimbledon, Zhu Lin faced Romanian veteran Irina-Camelia Begu. From the start of the game, Zhu Lin showed excellent form, with precise and powerful shots that Begu struggled to resist. In the first set, Zhu Lin easily won six games in a row, serving a bagel with a 6-0 score, giving her opponent an initial shock. Entering the second set, Zhu Lin continued her good form, quickly taking the lead. Although Begu attempted a comeback, winning a few games, Zhu Lin always controlled the pace of the game, winning another set 6-4, advancing smoothly.
In the second round, Zhu Lin’s opponent was the formidable 25th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Facing this experienced former French Open women’s singles runner-up, Zhu Lin was undaunted. She fully utilized her strengths, with steady and powerful baseline rallies, making it difficult for Pavlyuchenkova to find any breakthroughs. In handling crucial points, Zhu Lin was decisive, often playing outstanding winners, while her opponent became increasingly agitated, making frequent errors. Ultimately, Zhu Lin won in straight sets with scores of 6-4, 6-3, successfully advancing to the Round of 32.
In the third round, Zhu Lin faced the dark horse of this tournament, New Zealand’s Chinese-origin player LuLu Sun, who had previously defeated the eighth seed Zheng Qinwen 2-1 in the first round. The match started off tightly contested, with both players closely matching each other in score. Zhu Lin showcased tenacious fighting spirit in extended rallies, but Sun LuLu also performed excellently, her left-handed shots were powerful and placed precisely, posing a significant threat to Zhu Lin. In the first set, the two remained deadlocked until a tiebreaker. In the tiebreaker, Sun LuLu’s superior performance allowed her to take the first set 7-4. In the second set, Zhu Lin had a good start, taking the lead. However, Sun LuLu fought back tenaciously to equalize the score, the match once again entered a tiebreaker. This time, although Zhu Lin led at one point and even had two match points, Sun LuLu fearlessly scored consecutive points in the critical moments, and Zhu Lin ultimately lost the tiebreaker 6-8, narrowly.
Although she was unable to advance further, Zhu Lin’s Wimbledon journey had already achieved a personal breakthrough, refreshing her best performance at the All England Club. She demonstrated tenacious fighting spirit and a high level of competitive play against opponents of various styles. Especially in the match against Sun LuLu, Zhu Lin created a total of 18 break point opportunities but only capitalized on three. Her opponent’s high-quality serves at crucial moments greatly hindered her break chances rather than any issue with her own psychology. As she analyzed post-match: “Out of the 15 break points I didn’t take, maybe only one or two were due to my mistakes; most were her direct winners.” Zhu Lin’s analysis of the match was objective and accurate, she generously acknowledged that her opponent played better than herself, an attitude that more easily helps her identify the gaps to achieve further improvement.
Zhu Lin’s outstanding performance, besides her own efforts and persistence being the primary factors, is inseparable from the unwavering support of the YONEX brand. When Zhu Lin’s ranking was still relatively low, YONEX recognized her potential, entering into a partnership with her, and this cooperative relationship has continued up to now. This long-term companionship and trust made Zhu Lin more confident and composed on the court, almost imperceptibly.
With the improvement of her results and rankings, starting from last year, Zhu Lin’s racquets have been custom-engraved with her English name, a detail that fully reflects YONEX’s emphasis and attention to her. YONEX’s racquet technology perfectly matched Zhu Lin’s playing style. The excellent control performance of the seventh-generation VCORE 98 racquet allowed Zhu Lin to control the ball’s landing spots more accurately, providing a solid guarantee for the implementation of her tactics. Its powerful force transmission characteristics significantly increased her offensive power during baseline exchanges, giving her an advantage. At the same time, its good shock absorption effectively reduced the burden on her arms, enabling her to maintain stable performance in high-intensity matches.
Reviewing Zhu Lin’s entire Wimbledon journey, she gave her all in every match, showcasing the style and strength of China’s Golden Flower. Though she was unfortunately defeated in the third round, she successfully emerged from her slump in the first half of the year, proving that she still possesses ample competitiveness in the women’s tennis world. It is believed that in future competitions, Zhu Lin will continue to maintain this passion and fighting spirit, constantly breaking through herself under the assistance of YONEX, creating more brilliance for Chinese tennis. And the fighting spirit of Chinese tennis players at Wimbledon will inspire more young people to love tennis and dedicate themselves to this sport full of charm.
