Lily Zhang Reaches Top 16 Players in Women’s Singles

Paris, France – July 29, 2024 – Dusk fell on South Paris Arena 4, as Team USA’s Lily Zhang and Amy Wang took to the courts in the Women’s Singles round of 32 matches at 9 PM and 10 PM local time. The pair have been dominating play in the Pan Am region over the last two years and faced familiar foes on the Olympic stage tonight.

Up first, Lily Zhang faced Bruna Takahashi (BRA), the number 14 seed and a familiar opponent and friend. The two have met 4 times in the last year with Bruna winning 3 of the 4 encounters. Going into the match, Lily knew that she would need to play gutsy to win here at the Olympic Games.

“Especially with Bruna we’ve played so many times in the past. I’ve always struggled against her, especially mentally, especially at 7-7 and 8-8, I wasn’t able to overcome her. Today at 7-7 in the 6^th, I said screw it I have to go for it, and if I don’t risk it then I’m not going to win anyways, so might as well try.” – Lily Zhang

For Lily, a place in the top 16 has been her best result at the Olympics in her career. She joins only 3 other women who have progressed to this round – Wang Chen (2008 Beijing), Gao Jun (2008 Beijing), Liu Juan (2020 Tokyo). Her next match will be the winner of Shin Yubin (KOR) and Georgina Pota (HUN) on July 31^st.

 “This is something I’ve wanted for so long; I’ve worked so hard for. This is the furthest I’ve had for my 4 Olympics. [After I won] I wanted to raise my arms, but my knees just buckled, and I fell to the floor and everything just released and I was full of emotion.” – Lily Zhang

Amy Wang opened her match fearless against Adriana Diaz (#6 seed). Her aggressive backhands and classic forehand smashes earned her a great start on feature court. Amy quickly went up to a 2-0. Adriana fought back slowly, disrupting Amy’s rhythm and eventually took the match 4-2. Amy truly rose to the occasion in a packed arena tonight. Amy will be back in action in the team event on August 5^th.