Niemeier in Wimbledon flow?
It is actually very bitter that all the male and female athletes from our home area have already been eliminated from the US Open 2022? All female athletes? No, Jule Niemeier is the only one still holding up the German flag at her first participation in the main draw in Flushing Meadows. She is in the third round and will meet Qinwen Zheng from China on Saturday.
The Dortmund player is also the underdog in this match, but that didn’t bother her in the first two rounds. Our tested bookmakers look very much at the world rankings when evaluating the matches. There, the German is outside the top 100, but only because there were no points for her great quarter-final finish in Wimbledon.
In general, we would rate the 23-year-old German as a solid player in the top 60. Therefore, it is not that far to her Chinese opponent, who is currently ranked 39th. We therefore expect a match on equal terms, the winner of which will probably face the world number one Iga Swiatek. In general, we find it difficult to make a prediction in this third round match between Jule Niemeier and Qinwen Zheng.
But if the German manages to keep her game as variable as she did in the first two rounds, then we think a win for the 23-year-old is quite conceivable. However, the Chinese has proven her good form a few times recently. Therefore, it is anything but impossible to be successful with a tip on a Chinese victory between Jule Niemeier and Qinwen Zheng.
Jule Niemeier – Statistics & current form
Current world ranking: 108
Position in the seedings: unseeded
Somehow it almost seems as if Jule Niemeier enjoys being in the public eye. Her performances at Wimbledon were terrific and every day numerous requests for interviews fluttered in. After the tournament in London, however, it became a bit quiet around the German hopeful. Only now at the US Open does she seem to be coming out of her shell again and after all the other Germans have already been eliminated, the media’s interest is of course once again focused on the 23-year-old.
First time in round three of the US Open
Perhaps it was perfect that the Dortmund player had set herself up for qualification, but then slipped into the main draw at short notice. That’s why she has been in New York for a few days longer, could acclimatise, but didn’t have to play any matches. Perhaps this circumstance will pay off in the third round. Her sovereignty at least suggests that one should consider the odds on a German victory in the match between Jule Niemeier and Qinwen Zheng.
Her first two opponents in Flushing Meadows were quite a challenge. In the first round, Jule Niemeier faced the winner of the 2020 Australian Open. Sofia Kenin is currently far from her best form. Nevertheless, this match lasted longer than two hours, after the German had defeated the local heroine 7:6 and 6:4.
The second round was against Yulia Putintseva from Kazakhstan, who is comparable in quality to the Chinese player. Jule Niemeier was down 0:3 early in the first set, but from then on she dictated the match. The player from Dortmund won the first set 6-4 before she had few problems in the second set as well at 6-3 and is now in the third round of the US Open for the first time
Qinwen Zheng – Statistics & current form
Current world ranking: 39
Position in the seedings: unseeded
The Chinese is just 19 years old, but has already proven her potential as a teenager. In 2019, she reached the semifinals at the French Open and the US Open as a junior. So it’s not too far-fetched to predict a great career for Qinwen Zheng. At the moment, she is 39th in the WTA rankings and is therefore at her provisional carrier high.
Chinese favourite
But since this is her first time competing at the US Open, she will certainly climb up a few places after this tournament. How far it will go also depends on whether she manages to bring her German opponent to her knees on Saturday. In any case, a close match should be expected and we therefore tend to predict more than 2.5 sets between Jule Niemeier and Qinwen Zheng.
The Chinese player has already delivered some good results before the US Open. At Wimbledon, for example, she reached the last 16 after defeating Sloane Stephens. Most recently, she beat Ons Jabeur from Tunisia at the Masters in Toronto and reached the quarter-finals before being beaten by Karolina Pliskova.
The 19-year-old was able to continue her good form in New York. In the first round, she faced Latvian Jelena Ostapenko, who won the French Open in 2017 and was seeded 16th. The Chinese kept the upper hand in three sets. It was no easier in the second round against the Russian Anastasia Potapova. However, Qinwen Zheng prevailed in two sets with two tiebreaks.
Jule Niemeier – Qinwen Zheng Direct comparison / H2H record
Both ladies are still relative newcomers on the WTA Tour. Nevertheless, they have already played two matches against each other. The first duel took place in September 2020 at a Challenger tournament in Prerov, Czech Republic. At that time, the German won the round of 16 in two sets 6:4 and 6:2. The Chinese had to wait a little more than a year for a revenge.
In January of this year, they met at the Summer Set in Melbourne, a preparatory tournament for the Australian Open. In the qualifying round, the Chinese player defeated Jule Niemeier 6:4 and 6:0 in just over an hour. In the direct comparison, the score between Jule Niemeier and Qinwen Zheng is now 1-1 after wins.
Jule Niemeier – Qinwen Zheng Tip
Qinwen Zheng is certainly the rising star in the Chinese tennis sky. The Middle Kingdom apparently has a player who can follow in Li Na’s big footsteps. She has proved in the last week that she is not afraid of big names and has defeated several favourites, including Wimbledon finalists Ons Jabeur, Sloane Stephens or Jelena Ostapenko.
Jule Niemeier, however, has also shown that her path in the world rankings is going up. She is the underdog with the bookmakers, but that’s what she was in the first two rounds. Apparently, the German needs the big stages to play her best tennis.
But it is clear that the Dortmund player is in for a very tough match. At 19 years of age, the Chinese has a large repertoire. It’s not for nothing that she’s rushing towards the top 20 in the rankings with seven-league boots. But we still think that the German, who is four years older, can prevail if she reaches her limit. That’s why we decided to play the betting odds on another win for the German between Jule Niemeier and Qinwen Zheng.
