Zheng Qinwen suffers first-round exit at WTA Washington Open

China's Zheng Qinwen was knocked out in the first round of the WTA 500 Washington Open on Tuesday, falling 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 to Alexandra Eala of the Philippines, while compatriot Wang Xinyu advanced with a 7-6 (3), 6-3 victory over American qualifier Julietta Pareja.

The 21-year-old Eala, currently ranked 28th in the world, had previously lost to Zheng in the semifinals of the 2023 Asian Games.

Eala broke Zheng's serve in the opening game, but the Chinese star responded with two breaks of her own to take the first set 6-4. The second set remained tight at 4-4 before Eala held serve and secured a decisive break to level the match.

In the decider, Eala took control by breaking Zheng in her first two service games. Although Zheng recovered one break, Eala broke again to take the set 6-1 and seal victory.

Zheng fired 14 aces but was hampered by six double faults and won just 35.4 percent of points on her second serve. She converted only four of 11 break points while committing numerous unforced errors.

Eala landed 57.1 percent of her first serves, won nearly half of the points on her second serve and converted six of eight break points.

After her straight-set opening victory, Wang will next face Russia's Liudmila Samsonova, who eliminated sixth-seeded American Madison Keys.