Qinwen Zheng outlines the mistake she made in the second set against Leylah Fernandez in Tokyo

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Qinwen Zheng admitted what went wrong in the second set against Leylah Fernandez at the Tokyo Open.

For the second time in as many weeks, the pair played against each other and it was another three set affair.

There is no love lost between Zheng and Fernandez, and they contested another intense battle with a spot in the Tokyo semi-finals on the line.

After one hour and 48 minutes of action, Zheng recorded her second successive win over Fernandez by a 6-0, 1-6, 6-3 scoreline, and struck 18 winners in the process.

What mistake did Qinwen Zheng make against Leylah Fernandez at the Tokyo Open?

Qinwen Zheng produced a flawless display to claim the first set of her Tokyo Open quarter-final against Fernandez.

She took just 25 minutes to take the lead without losing a game. In fact, the 22-year-old won the first seven games of the match.

But things changed drastically as Fernandez found her footing and levelled proceedings by conceding just one game in set two.

The Paris Olympic champion composed herself to win set three and ultimately the match, but she admitted losing focus in the second set against an opponent who predominantly plays on or inside the baseline.

“I played great in the first set but in the second set I lost my focus a little bit and also he played well in the second set,” Zheng said during her on-court interview.

“To play a three-set match is not easy but I’m happy I fought until the end to win this match. The type of game of the opponent changed a lot, she’s one of the only players in front of the baseline and never goes back so today was not an easy match.”

Who is Qinwen Zheng’s next opponent?

For the second successive match, Zheng defeated Fernandez, in a clash that was not as heated as their contest in Wuhan.

Zheng levelled up their head-to-head rivalry at two wins apiece, and three of these four matches have gone to a deciding set.

The World number seven is into her fifth semi-final of 2024 and she will face the hard-hitting Diana Shnaider in the semi-finals.

The Russian did not play her quarter-final after she was given a walkover by Sayaka Ishii, who was unable to play her first ever WTA quarter-final.

Zheng will face Shnaider for the first time on Saturday, as she bids to make her second successive final after reaching the Wuhan Open championship match.