McCartney Kessler Pushes Zheng at Queen’s as Grass-Court Challenge Intensifies

Hey everyone, let’s talk about a pretty exciting and maybe even surprising matchup that went down at the Queen’s Club — McCartney Kessler versus Qinwen Zheng. Now, if you haven’t been keeping up, this was a high-stakes second-round match that turned a few heads, especially because it marked Zheng’s return to grass after a rough early exit at Wimbledon last year. On the flip side, we had the unseeded but determined American, McCartney Kessler, who’s quietly been building momentum.

Zheng came into this as the top seed, ranked No. 5 in the world, and fresh off a disappointing loss to Aryna Sabalenka at the French Open. So, she was clearly looking to reset her rhythm on grass — a surface that historically hasn’t been her strongest. In fact, she's only had one notable win on grass in the last three years, and that came against Naomi Osaka. That alone made this clash with Kessler more than just a routine match — it was a test of whether Zheng could shake off her grass-court jitters.

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Now let’s talk about Kessler. This match was her big opportunity, and she brought some fire. She’s already scored a major win this season against Coco Gauff, and while her grass experience is relatively light — most of her wins have come through qualifiers — she clearly wasn’t intimidated. Her first-round win over Francesca Jones showed she’s adapting quickly to the surface.

And it showed again here. Kessler played with intensity and didn’t let Zheng settle in easily. Zheng eventually took the first set 6-3, but it wasn’t smooth sailing. Kessler forced her to work for it. This was one of those matches where you could sense the underdog was right there, within striking distance. While Zheng’s experience and higher ranking gave her the edge, Kessler’s tenacity made it a fight. For Zheng, this win is important — not just to stay alive in the tournament, but to gain some much-needed confidence on grass before Wimbledon. For Kessler, even in defeat, it was a performance that says, "Hey, don’t overlook me."

What’s even more exciting is that the winner of this match sets up a quarter-final clash against none other than Emma Raducanu — who, by the way, is having an incredible resurgence and just steamrolled Rebecca Sramkova to move ahead. So now we’re looking at a Queen’s Club bracket that’s suddenly buzzing with storylines — a top seed trying to prove herself on an unfriendly surface, an American underdog on the rise, and a British star reclaiming her place.

This is what tennis is all about — unpredictability, grit, and players rising to the moment. McCartney Kessler may not have won this one, but she absolutely made a statement. Keep your eyes on her — she’s only going up from here.

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