Iga Swiatek's 25-match unbeaten run at Roland Garros comes to an end in the women's tennis semifinals at the Paris Games. (0:49)
"It really does mean everything. I always knew I could do it. But it's different [if] you know you can -- and you show it. And today, I really showed it," said Zheng, 21, whose best career result was reaching the final of the Australian Open in January before losing to Aryna Sabalenka.
"I'm so proud of myself," she added. "I'm so proud for my country."
It's not clear what Swiatek thought the way the day went.
That's because she skipped any questions from print reporters in the mixed zone area for interviews. Her face flushed and eyes red, Swiatek did not break stride as she passed journalists, saying only: "Sorry. Next time."
For the gold, Zheng will face 13th-seeded Donna Vekic of Croatia or unseeded Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia, who were scheduled to face each other Thursday night. Vekic eliminated No. 2 Coco Gauff, the 20-year-old American who is the reigning US Open champion, in the third round.
The outcome between Swiatek and Zheng was hard to foresee, given their head-to-head record entering the day and other factors. Swiatek has led the WTA rankings for nearly every week since April 2022, while Zheng is No. 7.
Plus, Swiatek appeared to be getting back into the match with a 4-0 lead in the second set.
Maybe until now, Zheng acknowledged, she wouldn't have been able to turn that deficit around.
"Before, when I'm at this stage, I'd let the match go. I'd say, 'OK, I lose the second set; let's fight for the third set.' But today, no. I didn't use this mentality," she explained. "I said: 'I'm just going to fight every single point. Let's see what's going to happen. I'm going to play smart. Wait for my chance.' Little by little, I started to get back in the match."
Swiatek's previous dominance against Zheng included a victory in the same stadium during the fourth round of the 2022 French Open. Zheng also took the first set of that one, the only set dropped by Swiatek during that event.
Things did not quite go so smoothly this week for the 23-year-old from Poland.
In the quarterfinals Wednesday, Swiatek was forced to three sets and got the wind knocked out of her when she was hit by a ball off the racket of opponent Danielle Collins, who wound up retiring from the match because of an injured stomach muscle. Afterward, Collins, an American, gave Swiatek a lecture being "insincere" when they spoke on court.
Surprisingly, perhaps, it was Zheng who made the first dent, taking advantage of three unforced errors by Swiatek, including a game-ending double fault, to break for a 2-1 lead. That lead, such as it was, lasted all of five minutes, because Swiatek -- backed by clap-accompanied shouts of "Iga! Iga!" -- broke right back to 2-all.
