- Last year's finalist falls to world number 97, Laura Siegemund.
- Zheng Qinwen was visibly excited when he was deducted a point
Last year's Australian Open runner-up Zheng Qinwen crashed out in a huge second-round upset at Melbourne Park against unattractive German veteran Laura Siegemund.
Zheng, seeded fifth, reached the first major of 2025 in imperious fashion.
In addition to her breakthrough to last year's Open title match, Zheng reached five more finals, won gold at the Paris Olympics and was runner-up to Coco Gauff at the season-ending championships.
But Wednesday was no match for Siegemund, 36, the oldest player still in the women's draw, who won 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 in two hours and 16 minutes.
It was the German's first victory over a top 10 player since 2022.
“I knew I had to play more than just my best tennis,” Siegemund said in his on-court interview.
Zheng Qinwen was left devastated after losing in straight sets to world number 97 Laura Siegemund at Melbourne Park on Wednesday (pictured).
Last year's women's singles runner-up became visibly emotional when she clashed with the referee after being docked a point for wasting time.
'I had nothing to lose, so I told myself to swing freely.
'(Zheng) is an incredible player, one of the best players at the moment.
“But I know I can play well and I just wanted to prove that to myself and make it a tough fight.”
His effort received high praise from former Australian star turned Channel Nine commentator Casey Dellacqua, who said: “In all the time I've watched tennis, played tennis, that has to be one of the most exceptional performances by a person of 36 years.”
Zheng had a heated exchange with the referee in the second set, when the chair interrupted her during her service move to hit her with one of a series of time code violations, docking her a point.
A visibly emotional Zheng argued that she couldn't see the clock as the crowd began to slowly applaud, and the referee told her to check the time before beginning her serve.
The woman who beat Zheng in last year's final at Melbourne Park, world number one Aryna Sabalenka, overcame a scare in the second set to take another step on the path to becoming the first woman this century to win three consecutive Australian Open crowns.
Unseeded Spanish Jessica Bouzas Maneiro led 5-2 in the second set, but the top seed from Belarus stepped on the accelerator.
Australian star turned commentator Casey Dellacuqa called the German's impressive victory the best effort he has ever seen from a 36-year-old.
Zheng also won gold at the Paris Olympics, making his brutal exit even more shocking.
Sabalenka, 26, has won the last five matches in a row 6-3 and 7-5 in one hour and 34 minutes.
“(Bouzas Maneiro) played incredible tennis today,” Sabalenka said.
“It was really difficult, I expected this tennis from her.”
The next step for the Belarusian is a round of 32 meeting with another unseeded player, Denmark's Clara Tauson, who defeated Germany's Tatjana Maria 6-2, 6-2.
Swiss superstar Martina Hingis was the most recent woman to lift the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup on three consecutive occasions in 1997-99.
Seventh-seeded American Jessica Pegula finally beat Elise Mertens for the first time in four tries, eliminating the Belgian 6-4, 6-2.
Mertens' best performance at a major came in her debut at the Australian Open in 2018, when she reached the semifinals before losing to Carolina Wozniacki.
Pegula reached her first Grand Slam final at last year's US Open, where she lost to Sabalenka.
Serbia's Olga Danilovic caused a minor surprise on Wednesday when she defeated Russian 25th seed Liudmila Samsonova 6-1, 6-2.