Sunday’s slate at the 2024 US Open features the highly-anticipated Olympic gold-medal rematch between Zheng Qinwen and Donna Vekic in the fourth round. Zheng will be trying to repeat her historic victory at the Paris Games, where she beat the Croatian, 6-2, 6-3, to claim China’s first Olympic medal in singles.
If Zheng defeats Vekic again and goes on to win the US Open, she would be the fourth woman to win Olympic gold and the US Open in the same year, joining Serena Williams (2012), Venus Williams (2000) and Steffi Graf (1988). But in Graf’s and Venus Williams’ cases – due to a pair of scheduling quirks—the Seoul and Sydney Olympics were played after the US Open, not before it.
Should Zheng triumph on Sunday, stay unbeaten and win the US Open, she would share three other unique features with Serena’s 2012 feat.
The London and Paris Olympics were played on surfaces different from the US Open.
Both players were required to make a swift adjustment to the hard courts of Flushing Meadows—Serena won Olympic gold on grass and Zheng won on clay.
“On clay, it's different games, different tactic style,” said Zheng said. “I'm sure [Sunday's rematch] will be more difficult because I consider [her] more a hard-court player instead of a clay-court player.”
Both won their Olympic medals at Grand Slam venues.
Second, Zheng and Williams both won Olympic gold at familiar sites: the London Games' tennis event was contested at the All-England Club, while Paris' tournament was hosted at Roland-Garros.
Both would face their opponent from the gold-medal match at the US Open.
At the 2012 US Open, Williams vanquished her Olympic opponent, 2012 Olympic silver medalist Maria Sharapova, 6-1, 6-1, in the first round en route to claiming her fourth US Open title (of six). Zheng will face Vekic in the fourth round.
“It's just another match," said Zheng about the upcoming contest. "I almost gave everything [at the] Olympic Games, but […] I also consider the US Open [to be] really, really important because Slams are always my dream. I will be prepared.”
Vekic also downplayed the coincidence, saying that Zheng “played an unbelievable match in Paris. I had couple of chances, but didn't manage to pull them off. But it's a new match. It's a different surface, thankfully for me. Hopefully it will be a different outcome.”
Meanwhile, Zheng has had the additional burden of having to re-focus after making history in Paris.
“The gold medal means a lot to my country, for my family. Also for me,” Zheng said. “[If] you have the first one, of course you're going to stay long time in the successful feeling. I [did] that [at the] Australian Open but I was just in the final [and lost to Aryna Sabalenka]. This time, when I had success at the Olympic Games, to come to next tournament, I told myself, ‘Everything starts zero.’ You are not the Olympic champion anymore. Just be humble and try to fight every single match because if you don't fight, [there's a] a big chance you lose.”
Zheng is seeded No. 7; Vekic is No. 24. Whoever wins will advance to the quarterfinals and match her deepest run at the US Open. Zheng was a quarterfinalist in 2023, Vekic in 2019. Stay tuned.
Lastly, a footnote for trivia buffs: When Steffi Graf won her golden Grand Slam in 1988, she beat different players at each of the four majors, but she had to defeat the same woman to win Olympic gold and the US Open. Who was it? (Answer: Gabriela Sabatini)
