By Shrivathsa Sridhar MELBOURNE (Reuters) -Last year's runner-up Zheng Qinwen was sent crashing out of the Australian Open second round on Wednesday as her bid to emulate Chinese compatriot Li Na's 2014 triumph evaporated after a shock 7-6(3) 6-3 defeat by unseeded German Laura Siegemund.

Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen won’t be repeating her surprising run to the Australian Open final in 2025 after a second-round upset loss to No. 97-ranked Laura Siegemund on Wednesday. Zheng lost the 2024 championship match at Melbourne Park to Aryna Sabalenka and went on to win the Olympic gold medal in Paris and finish runner-up at the WTA Finals in a breakout season.