China's Duan Yingying beats Bouchard in a recent Wimbledon match. (Photo : REUTERS)
China's Duan Yingying emerged victorious over Eugene Bouchard, last year's beaten finalist, during the first round of the anticipated Wimbledon Championships on June 30, Tuesday.
The Chinese player, who earned the moniker of "Davenport," shared that one of her sources of inspiration in sports is Lindsay Davenport, a former world no. 1 American tennis superstar.
"[She] has been my idol since I was a child. My coach always asked me to learn from her because we have similar height and size," she said.
The 26-year-old stands 1.86 meters. Though she looks as well-built as the American player, analysts say that she is unlikely to emulate the feat of the three-time Grand Slam winner. Davenport became the world's best player at the age of 22.
Nonetheless, Duan is still satisfied with her achievement, stating, "this is the best result in my career and I am very excited."
Duan is currently ranked 117th in the world. To have a match with 12th-ranked Bouchard, she had to beat three rivals in the qualifying rounds.
Duan pulled off a Bouchard stunner, defeating the Canadian player at 7-6 (3), 6-4 in one and a half hours. Her victory was a first in her career, being her first time to beat a player listed in the world's top 50.
Meanwhile, the game was Bouchard's 12th loss for the past 14 matches, pushing her outside the top 20 players.
Duan is set to clash with Germany's Tatiana Maria,who defeated Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia 7-6 (2), 7-5 in the day's another match.
She is also the only Chinese player left in the singles event after Denmark's Caroline Wozniachi ousted Zhang Saisai.
Asked about her feat, Dian remarked: "The victory has given me a lot of confidence. I know the next match will be more difficult. I will try my best to give the Chinese fans a chance to enjoy tennis."
