A wave of withdrawals hits the final group stage of the China Tour, with Shi Han and Cui Jie advancing to the semifinals

It is well known that withdrawals are not uncommon in tennis tournaments. However, several withdrawals occurring consecutively is quite unusual. Yesterday, on the last day of the China Tour group stage, such a situation unfolded. So, which players withdrew? And which matches were worth watching? Today, this article will take you through the details.

The tournament's second seed, Cui Jie, faced Wang Aoran yesterday. After winning just one game in the first set, Wang Aoran retired from the match. It is worth noting that Wang Aoran had also withdrawn in his opening match a few days ago when trailing by only one game in the first set. After defeating Wang Aoran, Cui Jie secured three consecutive wins in the group stage and advanced to the semifinals, where he will face Zeng Yaojie.

Liu Shaoyun, who is in the same group as Cui Jie, played against Xia Yue yesterday. Liu Shaoyun performed exceptionally well, allowing Xia Yue to win only five games throughout the match. Although Liu Shaoyun did not advance from the group, he finished second in the group standings. Meanwhile, Xia Yue suffered a third consecutive loss and ended up at the bottom of the group.

The tournament's third seed, Mo Yecai, who was unexpectedly overturned by Zeng Yaojie a few days ago and failed to advance from the group stage, faced Xiao Linang yesterday. Since Zeng Yaojie had already secured three straight wins and qualified from the group, the outcome of this match would not affect the group standings. After Mo Yecai took the first set 6-3, Xiao Linang retired. Despite winning his first career Challenger title this season, Xiao Linang's performance in the China Tour Finals has been disappointing. Perhaps he still has a long way to go.

The top seed in the women's singles, Zheng Wushuang, faced Ye Qiuyu yesterday. In the first set, with both players holding serve and tied at one game each, Ye Qiuyu surprisingly announced her retirement. This marked the first time since the start of the China Tour Finals that more than two matches ended in withdrawals.

Withdrawals continued as Shi Han faced the tournament's third seed, Yang Yidi, yesterday. What was expected to be a closely contested match turned out differently as Shi Han, who had won two matches in a row, played very steadily. She quickly pulled ahead in the first set, forcing the significantly trailing Yang Yidi to retire. Thus, neither the men's nor women's third seeds managed to advance from the group stage. Objectively speaking, this was quite an upset.

Wang Meiling played against Xu Jiayu yesterday. Xu Jiayu had already suffered two consecutive losses, making qualification from the group unlikely. Wang Meiling, who had defeated Liu Fangzhou, still held a slim chance to advance. In this match, Wang Meiling won with two 6-4 sets. Unfortunately, due to Zheng Wushuang’s walkover win, Wang Meiling only finished second in the group and, along with Ye Qiuyu and Xu Jiayu, was eliminated from the group stage.

Chen Mengyi faced Dang Yiming yesterday. After sweeping Guo Meiqi earlier, Dang Yiming was boosted with confidence. She took the first set 6-4, showing hope for victory. However, Chen Mengyi, who had already lost twice in a row, came back to win the next two sets and secured her first victory in the 2025 China Tour Finals.

Today marks the start of the China Tour semifinals. Who will win and advance to tomorrow’s final? Let me reveal the answer in tomorrow’s report. That’s all for today’s tennis story; stay tuned for more tomorrow.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Yixin Jushi)