Tokyo, Oct 24 (IANS): Top seed Zheng Qinwen began her 2024 Pan Pacific Open campaign with a commanding victory over Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima, winning 7-5, 6-0 in just over an hour. Zheng, the reigning Olympic gold medallist, had a slow start but regained her form in the second set, claiming the last nine games to seal a quarterfinal clash with No. 8 seed Leylah Fernandez.

Life has come full circle at the Pan Pacific Open for the Chinese star, now ranked among the elite. Back in 2022, Zheng was a promising 19-year-old when she reached her first WTA final at the same tournament, ultimately falling to Liudmila Samsonova.

Two years later, she’s coming off a deep run in Wuhan, which secured her spot in the prestigious WTA Finals Riyadh next month. After a closely contested first set, she found her rhythm and cruised to victory, dropping no games in the second set.

Elsewhere, British No. 1 Katie Boulter also progressed to the quarterfinals with a dominant 6-1, 6-2 win over Japan’s Kyoka Okamura. No.9 seed Katie Boulter dropped just three games against lucky loser Kyoka Okamura to reach her fourth tour-level quarterfinal of 2024.