Zhang Shuai's six-match winning streak was ended by a tough opponent, but she received heartfelt comfort; netizens say: treat it as a training session and don’t focus on the result.

Although everyone knows no one can keep winning forever, some fans and netizens found Zhang Shuai’s defeat to Barthel difficult to accept, particularly because it was her fifth loss in a row!

Since claiming the championship in Yokohama, Japan, Zhang Shuai had achieved a streak of six consecutive wins after moving on to Angers.

Before the second-round match against Barthel, fans and netizens predicted it would be tough, but they still believed that from a revenge perspective, Zhang Shuai would give her all to win this hard-fought battle and prove herself to the world.

Zhang Shuai had faced Barthel four times before, losing all matches to the German player.

In 2014, Zhang Shuai met Barthel twice—once at the Australian Open and once at the US Open—suffering two straight losses; in 2015, their third encounter was at the China Open, where Zhang also lost on home soil; in 2017 at the Prague 250 tournament, Barthel again emerged victorious.

A clear pattern in these four matches was that Zhang Shuai lost in straight sets each time, and the scorelines worsened with every encounter.

Because of these previous four matches, some expressed particular concern for Zhang Shuai, saying she had no psychological advantage and questioning whether fatigue from continuous competition might cause her to suffer a fifth consecutive defeat against Barthel.

However, others were optimistic, pointing out that those four matches happened quite a while ago and were not very relevant now. Moreover, Zhang Shuai entered this match with the momentum and confidence from her Yokohama title, plus the motivation of revenge. At this moment, the one who should be worried is Barthel, definitely not Zhang Shuai.

Yet, when the match officially began, based on Zhang Shuai’s performance in the first set, fans and netizens watching the live broadcast were already exclaiming that they "couldn’t bear to watch."

Unlike her solid debut in Angers against the Spanish player Basols, Zhang Shuai’s form seemed to have dropped sharply this time against Barthel, as she was quickly dominated by her opponent.

It was expected that under pressure Zhang Shuai would fight hard against Barthel and possibly change the match’s momentum, but Barthel took the first set 6-1 with ease, and Zhang failed to make any significant impact.

Seeing Zhang Shuai lose the first set so quickly and Barthel growing increasingly confident visibly, everyone realized that the Chinese star was in serious trouble and eagerly awaited to see how Zhang would respond in the second set and whether she could push the match to a decider.

What deserves praise is that although Zhang Shuai lost the first set badly, she adjusted well and performed noticeably better in the second set compared to the first.

When the two players fought fiercely in the second set, many thought Zhang Shuai had a chance to turn the match around, with some even saying, "If she takes the second set, we’ll fully support her to win in the final set."

Unfortunately, as the match progressed, Zhang Shuai gradually wore down, and after being broken, she ultimately lost the second set 6-4 to Barthel, handing her the fifth straight defeat.

Losing in straight sets to her tough opponent Barthel ended Zhang Shuai’s six-match winning streak from Yokohama, preventing her from extending that momentum.

After the loss, many said it was expected since Zhang Shuai had struggled even against the relatively unknown Basols in her opening match, indicating that continuous play had worn her down, making defeat against the stronger Barthel inevitable.

Seeing Zhang Shuai leave the court with a somewhat lonely figure carrying her bag, some comforted the Chinese star, telling her not to worry about the result and to treat it as a training session, which was very heartwarming.

Next, Zhang Shuai will compete in the Limoges 125 tournament, which will be her last event of the season. Fans and netizens praised her hardworking spirit, saying that at 36 years old, to still perform at this level and surpass many younger domestic players is truly admirable. “The result no longer matters; the goal is to gain experience through competition.”(Source: Tennis Home; Author: Moon River’s Starry Sky)