Zhang Shuai exits doubles quarterfinals, bids farewell to Charleston; Wang Xiyu sweeps past Tian Fangran, closing in on third comeback title.

The presence of China's Golden Flowers has completely vanished from Charleston, and this day arrived earlier than expected!

After Yuan Yue fell to Italian player Cocciaretto in the second round and departed, Zhang Shuai, now the sole remaining Golden Flower, became the only hope for the team.

Although Zhang Shuai experienced a first-round exit in Charleston singles, expectations remained high for her. Many pointed out that without the burden of singles, she could potentially advance further in doubles, which is her current absolute advantage.

In this Charleston doubles tournament, Zhang Shuai did not continue partnering with Mertens but teamed up with Krunic. Their status as the top-seeded pair drew significant attention.

Particularly after defeating the strong跨国组合 of Sugadi and Zeng Limei in the first round with scores of 7-6 and 7-5, thwarting their attempt to upset, expectations for Zhang Shuai in doubles were subtly elevated.

In the quarterfinals against the American本土组合 of Krauske and McNally, many were confident about Zhang Shuai's pair. Some even claimed that since even the formidable Sugadi and Zeng Limei couldn't stop the top seeds, the American本土组合's hopes for a major upset were slim.

However, the unexpected arrived ahead of tomorrow, surprising many.

Whether due to Zhang Shuai's pair being slow to start or the exhaustion from the first-round two-set battle that reached seven games not being fully recovered, Zhang Shuai and Krunic were completely off form from the first set, dominated by the American本土组合, with a被动场面 that was heartbreaking.

With no visible improvement in Zhang Shuai's pair's condition and their quick surrender of the first set in a breadstick manner, a sense of foreboding emerged in everyone's minds.

Though pushed to the brink, Zhang Shuai's pair showed明显 better反击状态 in the second set compared to the first, but in气势 and默契配合, they still couldn't match the American本土组合. Despite全力拼搏, Krauske and McNally ended the match 7-5, announcing the elimination of the top-seeded pair.

After Zhang Shuai's pair was upset and eliminated, it意味着 China's Golden Flowers' Charleston journey concluded entirely, with only one win in both singles and doubles, far below expectations.

While Zhang Shuai traveled far and was eliminated early in both singles and doubles, another prominent flower, Wang Xiyu, competing domestically, presented a different scene.

Wang Xiyu, competing in Liu'an, Anhui,啃下来 the tough opponent Zhu Lin in the first round, causing夺冠呼声 to surge overnight. In the second round against同胞 Tian Fangran, many noted that despite Tian's大赛经验和整体战绩 being inferior to Wang Xiyu, she wasn't an absolute novice. Wang needed to be cautious; only by defeating Tian could the Liu'an 100k title become increasingly secure.

Perhaps Wang Xiyu resonated with fans and网友, hearing their calls across distances. Against Tian Fangran, she accelerated from the first set, swiftly delivering a bagel to Tian.

In the second set, while Tian Fangran hadn't recovered, Wang's火力有增无减. As Tian's状态刚有起色 and prepared for a殊死搏斗, Wang不给机会, ending the match 6-3.

From many pre-match predictions that Tian could pose a threat to Wang Xiyu, to being暴扫 by Wang, securing only three games in the entire match, this outcome surprised外界 and likely dealt a打击 to Tian.

After defeating Tian Fangran, many坚信 that no one could easily challenge Wang Xiyu for the Liu'an 100k title. The reason is simple: since her伤愈复出, Wang has executed the农村包围城市 strategy with巨大成功, boasting a恐怖 12连胜状态.

Except for facing prominent flower Zhu Lin and middle-tier flowers Guo Hanyu and Ji Ge, each requiring a tiebreak, against familiar Golden Flowers like Zheng Wushuang, Zhang Ruien, and Tian Fangran, Wang didn't allow them to win more than three games per match. This shows Wang's复出决心 of不成功便成仁. Such a Wang Xiyu is hard to defeat, naturally迫切 the Liu'an 100k title; her third comeback title is already beckoning!(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Moon River's Sky)