At 41, Zvonareva makes a miraculous comeback, while Gao Xinyu loses ten consecutive games and misses the final but still ranks as China's fifth best female player.

Today, at the ITF W100 event in Dubai, two players with very different backgrounds made headlines in the women's singles semifinals. The 41-year-old Russian veteran Zvonareva fought hard over three sets to overcome 16-year-old British prodigy Stoisavljevic 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-4, returning to a professional singles final after almost five years.

On the same court, Chinese player Gao Xinyu, despite winning the first set, was overturned and lost 6-4, 3-6, 0-6 to Croatian player Maskinko, ending her run in the semifinals.

The 41-year-old veteran Zvonareva made her comeback in Dubai this week after undergoing shoulder surgery last year that forced her off the tennis circuit. She revealed that post-surgery pain was so intense she couldn’t compete, leading her to briefly coach younger players. Encouraged by her family, she decided last November to enter the ITF W100 tournament in Dubai, where she had been training daily and felt very familiar with the environment.

As a former world No. 2, her path to this week’s final was impressive: she defeated world No. 238 Walter in the first round, then beat Martinkova in the second, and overcame compatriot Lanselei in the third. This marks her first singles final since the 2021 St. Petersburg tournament, and her ranking has returned to inside the top 1000.

Besides veteran Zvonareva, Chinese player Gao Xinyu’s matches also attracted significant attention. She showed good form by defeating Russian player Ibrahimova 7-6, 6-2 in the quarterfinals.

However, Gao’s semifinal opponent, Croatian player Maskinko, was also in excellent shape, having won nine consecutive singles matches. As last year’s US Open junior girls’ singles champion, she demonstrated strong momentum.

Before the match, many fans were anxious for Gao Xinyu. One netizen commented, “Gao struggled in early rounds and even took a medical timeout in the first round. Her physical condition is a big question mark against such relentless pressure from her opponent. Gao needs to finish quickly; dragging into a long battle would definitely not be good for her!”

Once the match against Maskinko began, Gao quickly found her rhythm, using aggressive baseline play to take the first set and lead 3-2 in the second. However, the momentum shifted dramatically afterward as Gao made more unforced errors and her stamina waned, leaving her unable to handle baseline rallies, ultimately losing ten straight games and suffering a disappointing defeat.

The good news is that by reaching the semifinals, she earned 39 ranking points, which immediately boosted her ranking by 11 places to No. 164, surpassing Zhu Lin, Guo Hanyu, and Wang Xiyu, temporarily placing her as China’s fifth-ranked female player.

Despite the loss, she received much encouragement, especially since Gao has steadily improved over the past year. In February, she reached the final of the Leishino W75 event, achieving a career-high ranking of No. 127. In June, she reached the quarterfinals of the Valencia WTA125 tournament, and in July, she qualified for the main draw of the WTA250 Prague event, marking her first entry into a WTA main draw this season.

“It’s a pity for Gao Xinyu; she may have lost focus when leading, and her body seemed to reach its physical limits. But earning 39 points is solid. Keep pushing! I believe she will continue to improve. This match showed her fighting spirit and gave us hope. Keep it up,” commented a fan who follows Chinese tennis closely.

Gao Xinyu’s strong performance in Dubai has reinforced her position in Chinese women’s tennis. She has already registered for two tournaments in Thailand and Australia in the first week of next year, continuing her efforts to climb higher in the rankings.

In the tennis world, the clash between experience and youth never stops. Zvonareva proves with her racket that age is just a number, while Gao Xinyu’s rising ranking showcases the depth and potential of Chinese tennis.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Lu Xiaotian)