英语听力精选进阶版 6117

Player Makes History for Chinese Tennis 郑洁改写中国网球历史

Zheng Jie yesterday became the first Chinese singles player to get through to the semi-final of a major tennis competition.

She beat 18th seed Nicole Vaidisova 6-2 5-7 6-1. The match was a showcase for her attacking style and her tenacity¹. In the first set, she exploited Vaidisova's only double-faults to break her serve twice, and defended four break points of her own. Vaidisova claimed the second set, but once Zheng broke to go 3-1 up in the third set, she did not look back.

This is the latest triumph in what is turning out to be a dazzling tournament for the 24-year-old. Zheng won the 2006 Wimbledon doubles competition with Zi Yan, but an ankle injury stopped her from playing for the whole of 2007. Her ranking drifted to 133 but she entered Wimbledon this year on a wild card.

Then she astonished the crowd on day five by beating top seed Ana Ivanovic in two sets. “She has very powerful shot. She stays very low, so the balls are coming much faster through the air” Ivanovic said after the match.

Zheng went on to despatch² Hungarian Agnes Szavay in round four and now Vaidisova.

“Did I think I could reach the semi-finals when I was given a wild card? No.” Zheng said. “I cannot believe I have got this far.”

So there is now a chance she will play in the final, which happens to be on her birthday. But before that can happen, she’ll have to overcome Serena Williams. Williams is on blistering³ form this year, thrashing Agnieszka Radwanska in the quarter finals 6-4 6-0.

“Serena is a two-times winner and a very prominent player on grass - I am in the semi-finals for the first time” Zheng said. “In 2004, I lost to her in the first round when she was the defending champion. I hope I do better this time.”

Zheng, who is from Chengdu, has pledged to give her share of any winnings to victims of the earthquake in Sichuan. But even if she makes her exit before the final, she has done much to raise the profile of Chinese tennis, impressing enormously the players, pundits⁴ and crowds of Wimbledon.

Her success has also raised Wimbledon’s profile. Former women’s No 1 Tracy Austin made a prediction: “There are going to be more people watching that semi-final than I think ever in the history of Wimbledon.”

GLOSSARY 词汇表

seed 种子选手

showcase 展示

tenacity 不屈不挠

set 盘

double-fault 双误 

break someone's serve 破发球局

break point 破发点

claimed 拿下

did not look back 一路前进直到比赛胜利

triumph 胜利

dazzling （技术表现）精湛的

ranking 排名

drifted 慢慢降到

wild card 外卡

despatch （速战）击败

blistering 极好（状态）

thrashing 痛击

prominent 一流的

raise the profile 提高声望，地位

pundit 评论员

1 tenacity   

n.坚韧

参考例句：

• Tenacity is the bridge to success.坚韧是通向成功的桥。
• The athletes displayed great tenacity throughout the contest.运动员在比赛中表现出坚韧的斗志。

2 despatch   

n./v.(dispatch)派遣；发送；n.急件；新闻报道

参考例句：

• The despatch of the task force is purely a contingency measure.派出特遣部队纯粹是应急之举。
• He rushed the despatch through to headquarters.他把急件赶送到总部。

3 blistering   

adj.酷热的；猛烈的；使起疱的；可恶的v.起水疱；起气泡；使受暴晒n.[涂料] 起泡

参考例句：

• The runners set off at a blistering pace. 赛跑运动员如脱缰野马般起跑了。
• This failure is known as preferential wetting and is responsible for blistering. 这种故障称为优先吸湿，是产生气泡的原因。 来自辞典例句

4 pundits   

n.某一学科的权威，专家( pundit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The pundits disagree on the best way of dealing with the problem. 如何妥善处理这一问题，专家众说纷纭。 来自辞典例句
• That did not stop Chinese pundits from making a fuss over it. 这并没有阻止中国的博学之士对此大惊小怪。 来自互联网