PARIS - Chinese top tennis player Zheng Qinwen created history as she defeated top seed Iga Swiatek to reach the Paris Olympic tennis final here on Thursday at Roland Garros.

Australian Open finalist Zheng improved China's previous best result of last four in the Olympic women's singles event by two-time Grand Slam winner Li Na, beating Poland's Swiatek 6-2, 7-5.

Zheng broke Swiatek early in the first set before carrying her momentum through the match to reach the final and a guaranteed medal.

China's medal hopeful earlier fought hard to qualify for the semifinals against German veteran Angelique Kerber. In a marathon 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (6) victory on Court Philippe-Chatrier, Zheng, still recovering from an equally tough match the day before, struggled to find her rhythm, committing 49 unforced errors and being broken five times. For Kerber, this match marked the end of a successful career in which the German won three Grand Slams and an Olympic silver medal.

The first set was a rollercoaster as both players frequently broke each other's serve, neither able to dominate. The match began poorly for China's No. 1 when Zheng was broken in the first game, committing numerous unforced errors and allowing Kerber to gain an early advantage. 

It took time for Zheng to find her flow against Kerber, who had announced her retirement before the tournament. Zheng broke back in the sixth game, shifting the momentum in her favor briefly. However, Kerber dug deep to break Zheng again while serving for the set, then held her own serve convincingly.

With the momentum on her side, Kerber broke Zheng for the third time in the set. When serving for the set, Zheng fought back, breaking Kerber for the third time to force a tiebreak. In the tiebreak, momentum continued to shift, but Kerber exploited Zheng's weakness on her second serve to win 7-4.

The second set saw both players initially hold their serves until Zheng broke after a lengthy deuce battle. But Zheng couldn't capitalize, immediately getting broken back by Kerber. Both players then held their serves for four games until Zheng broke Kerber again in the ninth game. Serving for the set, Zheng held firm and secured the set.

With rain expected, the roof was closed for the decisive third set, focusing the crowd's attention. Zheng struggled to maintain her momentum, getting broken without scoring in the third game. 

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In the following game, Zheng fought hard to break back, but Kerber held her serve after a tough battle over eight break points. As the match neared its conclusion, Zheng broke Kerber again. Despite the pressure on their serves, both players held, taking the third set to a tiebreak.

The battle of attrition reached its climax just shy of the three-hour mark. Despite Kerber taking the first point, Zheng pulled ahead, but Kerber closed the 6-3 gap to 6-6 on Zheng's serve. 

With the crowd behind the veteran, the pressure was on Zheng to dig deep. An intelligent drop shot put Zheng back on match point, and a missed return by Kerber on Zheng's serve finally gave the Chinese sixth seed the victory after more than three hours of grueling tennis.