Day 8 features the gold medal matches in women’s singles and men’s doubles, as well as the bronze medal matches in men’s singles and men’s doubles.
Six months ago, Qinwen Zheng played the biggest match of her life: the championship match of the Australian Open. And she lost it, by a score of 6-3, 6-2 to defending champion Aryna Sabalenka. After that life-changing run, Qinwen did not achieve another strong result until two weeks ago in Palermo, winning a WTA clay court title. Now she’s on a 10-match winning streak, after upsetting Iga Swiatek in the semifinals, and on Saturday plays in the next biggest match of her life.
Three weeks ago, Donna Vekic played the biggest match of her life: the semifinals of Wimbledon. And she lost it, in heartbreaking fashion, to Jasmine Paolini in a third-set tiebreak. Yet at her very next event, Vekic has advanced one round further, after upsetting Coco Gauff in the third round, and outlasting Marta Kostyuk in a dramatic quarterfinal. And on Saturday, she also plays in the next biggest match of her life.
Also on Day 8, the men’s doubles gold medal will be rewarded to either Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram of the United States or Matthew Ebden and John Peers of Australia. Plus, the bronze medal matches in both men’s singles and doubles will be played, with Felix Auger-Aliassime vying for his second bronze medal of these Games against Lorenzo Musetti.
Donna Vekic on Thursday in Paris (twitter.com/itftennis)
Qinwen Zheng [CHN] (6) vs. Donna Vekic [CRO] (13) – Not Before 3:30pm on Court Philippe-Chatrier
They have split two previous meetings, both on hard courts, and neither anywhere near this important. Both certainly didn’t mind getting a day’s rest on Friday, as they endured complicated paths to this gold medal match, with both very nearly exiting this event in earlier rounds. Before taking out Iga Swiatek in straight sets on Thursday, Qinwen played back-to-back three-setters that each lasted over three hours. Vekic only dropped one set through five rounds, though her quarterfinal against Marta Kostyuk went all the way to 10-8 in a third-set tiebreak.
Qinwen is 29-12 on the year, and 16-4 on clay, while Vekic is 27-15 on the year, and 8-4 on clay. Qinwen’s good results have been scattered between January and the last few weeks, while Vekic was actually just 14-13 as of a week before Wimbledon, so she’s had an amazing six weeks of tennis. In WTA finals, 21-year-old Zheng is 3-3, and 28-year-old Donna is a subpar 4-9.
Both are going to look to be their usual aggressive selves, and control rallies from the baseline. But the largest difference on such a big occasion will likely be which player remains more composed, and Qinwen is the one who is usually much more composed on court, while Vekic can easily become emotional and negative. If Zheng can avoid a letdown after arguably the biggest win of her career in the last round, I like her chances of winning a gold medal for China.
Lorenzo Musetti earlier this week in Paris (twitter.com/itftennis)
Lorenzo Musetti [ITA] (11) vs. Felix Auger-Aliassime [CAN] (13) – Last on Court Philippe-Chatrier
Both men were defeated rather soundly in Friday’s semifinals, though Auger-Aliassime’s day ended on quite a high, winning a bronze medal in mixed doubles with Gabriela Dabrowski. However, there’s not much shame involved when losing to Carlos Alcaraz or Novak Djokovic, so I expect both to be feeling rather confident on Saturday. Before their semifinal losses on Friday, Lorenzo hadn’t dropped a set, while Felix had dropped only one.
Musetti has been red-hot since the beginning of the grass court season, with a record of 19-5, and reaching the semifinals or better at all five events he’s played. By contrast, Auger-Aliassime had lost four of his last five matches prior to this tournament. But the Canadian thrives when representing his country, and has elevated his level this past week.
Auger-Aliassime is 3-2 against Musetti, though the Italian leads 2-1 on clay. Yet their most relevant encounter may have been their last one, in the 2022 Davis Cup, on another occasion when both were playing for their countries. And on that day, Felix prevailed in straight sets.
The 23-year-old Canadian had a terrible start to his career in ATP finals, losing the first eight, all in straight sets. But he has resoundingly turned that around, winning five of his last seven. The 22-year-old Italian is 2-2 in ATP finals, though his two losses both came within the past two months. However, this is a bronze medal match, which is similar to a final, yet a bit different. Both are coming off a loss, and only one man will medal in men’s singles, so the stakes are extremely high.
And with a medal for their respective countries on the line, I give the slight edge to Auger-Aliassime to earn a second bronze medal. Much like the women’s singles gold medal match earlier in the day, composure may be key, and I trust Felix to be the more composed player on this occasion.
Other Notable Matches on Saturday:
Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajiceck after winning their semifinal (twitter.com/itftennis)
Matthew Ebden and John Peers [AUS] vs. Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram [USA] (4) – All four men are Major champions in doubles, while both Peers and Ram have previously won Olympic medals in mixed doubles, though neither has won gold.
Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul [USA] (3) vs. Tomas Machac and Adam Pavlasek [CZE] – Fritz and Paul both failed to make the medal rounds in singles, but are looking to make up for that with a bronze in men’s doubles. Machac is another player vying for his second medal of these Games, after winning gold on Friday night in mixed doubles alongside Katerina Siniakova.
Saturday’s full Order of Play is here.
