The highly anticipated first Australian Open showdown between Chinese female players ended prematurely! Wei Sijia unexpectedly withdrew due to injury, missing the chance to face Ma Yexin.

The much-anticipated Australian Open derby between Chinese female players ended earlier than expected, leaving fans disappointed by Wei Sijia’s withdrawal that prevented her match against Ma Yexin.

After Zhu Lin launched the Chinese tennis squad’s campaign in the Australian Open qualifiers, the young Chinese player Ma Yexin, who played early on the second day, impressed by taking the victory baton directly from her senior, causing a notable upset.

When Ma Yexin drew the 32nd seed Lepchenko in the first round of the Australian Open qualifiers, the betting odds of 2.62 against her, compared to Lepchenko’s 1.44, clearly indicated she was not favored to win.

Besides being younger, Ma Yexin’s overall strength and experience in major tournaments cannot match Lepchenko’s. Therefore, before the match started, everyone hoped Ma would play freely and with nothing to lose, fighting hard against the American star, possibly carving a path through sheer determination and forcing bookmakers to reconsider their odds next time — loudly proving, “Who’s underestimating whom?”

Judging by Ma Yexin’s performance in the first set, she clearly refused to accept the bookmakers’ verdict and showed the fierce fighting spirit expected of her, battling Lepchenko intensely.

This strategy quickly paid off for Ma Yexin, as she dominated Lepchenko and led throughout the set, finishing strongly with a 6-1 win, earning praise from fans and viewers who called her “too aggressive” and encouraged her to keep it up!

It was initially expected that such a crushing first-set loss would shake Lepchenko’s confidence, allowing the Chinese player to capitalize and win the second set to close out the match.

However, Lepchenko quickly proved her long-standing presence in tennis was no accident by showing her experience, taking a 3-1 lead in the second set, seemingly aiming to teach Ma Yexin a lesson that experience counts.

Ma Yexin’s near invincibility in the first set followed by signs of faltering in the second caused many viewers to worry that a Lepchenko comeback would be heartbreaking for Ma, hoping she would fight desperately in this critical moment, with the worst outcome being just a loss.

What earned Ma Yexin huge praise was her apparent connection with fans and viewers, as from the fifth game onward, she dominated by winning five consecutive games, stunning Lepchenko and turning the match around with a 6-3 comeback to clinch a surprising victory on the second day of the Australian Open qualifiers.

Following Ma Yexin’s success after Zhu Lin’s breakthrough, all eyes turned to Wei Sijia. Fans hoped this young player from Guangxi would firmly take the victory baton from the Chinese female team and push the new season’s first Australian Open derby into reality, giving fans an exhilarating experience.

When Wei Sijia took the first set 6-4 and was close to winning, everyone was thrilled and optimistic that the derby would proceed as planned.

Even when her opponent Kalieva fought back in the second set with a 6-2 win to level the match, people still believed Wei Sijia would hold firm under pressure and not let the anticipated “Wei vs. Ma” match be canceled.

To everyone’s surprise, during the first five games against Kalieva, Wei Sijia suffered a back injury that forced her to withdraw when trailing 2-3 in the deciding set, thus canceling the derby with Ma Yexin.

Although Wei Sijia’s injury withdrawal was deeply regretted, causing the Chinese female team to miss the chance to secure a spot in the Australian Open qualifier final round early, many fans quickly sent warm wishes to the Guangxi player to recover well and come back stronger next year. They also encouraged Ma Yexin to take on the task Wei couldn’t finish, hoping she would help her teammate by defeating Malieva and securing a spot in the qualifier final, bringing double joy.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Moonlit River’s Starry Sky)