Zheng ousts No. 1 Sabalenka in Rome; Gauff next

ROME — Zheng Qinwen earned her first victory over top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 6-3 on Wednesday to set up an Italian Open semifinal match against Coco Gauff.

The 22-year-old Zheng, the Olympic champion from China, had lost all six previous matches against Sabalenka. The eighth-ranked Zheng saved all five break points she faced and broke Sabalenka’s serve three times to reach the last four.

Rome is the last big warmup before the French Open starts on May 25.

Gauff extended her unbeaten streak against Mirra Andreeva to also advance to the last four at the clay-court tournament. She played aggressively throughout in a 6-4, 7-6 (5) win.

Both players hit high-quality shots in the tiebreaker, including Andreeva’s superb drop shot just behind the net from a tight angle that allowed her to level at 5-5 before Gauff won the last two points to seal the match.

Gauff has won all four of her matches against the 18-year-old Andreeva, having also beaten her at the French Open and US Open in 2023 and two weeks ago in Madrid.

Jasmine Paolini and Peyton Stearns face off in the other semifinal.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.