Seeds have been eliminated one after another, and Zhu Lin faces the promising Bosas in the next round, with the hope of being the first to reach the top eight in a 1000 event.

At the Montreal tournament, the 31-year-old Chinese veteran Zhu Lin is poised to continue writing her own "comeback legend." With all the seeds in the eighth section eliminated, Zhu Lin has come into a "golden opportunity"—if she defeats the dark horse Bosas in the next round, she will return to the world’s top 200 and achieve the glory of reaching the top eight in a 1000 event for the first time.

Returning from injury, Zhu Lin's performance has not been ideal, entering the Montreal tournament ranked 493rd in the world, and many fans are not optimistic about her prospects. However, as the saying goes, "Everyone doubts you, but you are the one who proves them wrong." After the withdrawal of China's top player Zheng Qinwen, Zhu Lin has taken up the mantle, defeating Gracheva, Alexandrova, and Lamens, making her the lowest-ranked player in WTA 1000 history to reach the last 16. Following three consecutive victories, her live ranking has surged to 304th, a jump of 189 places.

After reaching the last 16 in the women's singles, Zhu Lin received more good news. Ito Aoi caused an upset by defeating Paulini, only to be reversed by Bosas, resulting in all the seeded players in her eighth section being eliminated. Therefore, the dark horse Bosas becomes the final hurdle for Zhu Lin's advancement. If she can win, Zhu Lin will tie her personal best in the tour and unlock the milestone of reaching the top eight in a 1000 event for the first time in her career.

Furthermore, advancing to the last 16 has already earned Zhu Lin 120 points and a prize of $56,000 (approximately 400,000 RMB). If she can go further in the next round, her points will increase by another 120, and her total prize money will exceed $110,000, which is three times the total prize money she earned in three months since her comeback.

However, her opponent is not easy to beat. The current world-ranked 51st Spanish rising star is known for her powerful topspin and baseline resilience. In this round, she reversed and eliminated the upset Paulini with a score of 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, showcasing her strong comeback ability. Additionally, Bosas has a hard court record of 13 wins and 14 losses this season, largely due to her noticeable fluctuations in handling crucial points—despite her comeback against Ito Aoi, she made as many as 22 unforced errors in the first set.

According to the betting odds, Bosas is favored by the bookmakers with odds of 1.65, while Zhu Lin is at a disadvantage with odds of only 2.30. However, both data suggest the possibility of an upset: first, Zhu Lin has defeated top 20 players twice this season, and her hard court defensive counter-attacking style is particularly effective against power players; second, Bosas had a first serve success rate of only 58% and a second serve drop to 39% in her last match against qualifier Ito Aoi. If Zhu Lin maintains her impressive 70% break point conversion rate from the first two rounds (breaking four times against Lamens), she could easily breach Bosas's defenses.

Moreover, from various official statistics, the difference in experience between Zhu Lin and the only 22-year-old Bosas on their journey to the last 16 in a 1000 event is significant, making psychological stability a decisive factor. Zhu Lin has a scoring rate of over 65% in long rallies in her last three matches, while Bosas's error rate surged by 30% during passive movements. Lastly, Zhu Lin has won her first two rounds in straight sets, totaling only 2 hours and 18 minutes, while Bosas fought through three sets for 2 hours and 47 minutes, giving her six hours less recovery time.

“Bosas struggles against fast-paced play! Zhu Lin just needs to keep attacking her backhand and switch to forehand, avoiding getting caught in topspin rallies—refer to her tactics against Alexandrova in the decisive set!” a seasoned tennis fan shared his insights.

An ESPN commentator from European Sports remarked, “Zhu Lin's transformation lies in her execution under adversity. Against Alexandrova, after losing the first set 1-6, she immediately adjusted her serve placement, daring to aim for the corners on her second serve. This ability to correct herself in real time is what gives her the confidence to challenge for the top eight.”

In the early hours of August 2nd, Beijing time, the Montreal court will witness this "dark horse showdown." For Zhu Lin, this is not only a leap in ranking and prize money but also a soul battle to declare to the tennis world that “the veteran is not finished yet.” As she calmly stated after sweeping Lamens, “I didn’t expect the score to be so easy; I just focused on each shot.” This relaxed attitude of letting go of burdens is the opposite of Bosas's pre-match admission of being "nervous to the point of insomnia."(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Lu Xiaotian)