China's Zheng Jie mashes the ball against India's Sania Mirza during the Asian Games Tennis Women's singles final in Doha, Qatar, Wednesday Dec. 13, 2006. Zheng won the gold. Dec. 14 - China's Zheng Jie silenced hundreds of raucous Indian fans by defeating starlet Sania Mirza in the Asian Games women's singles final.
Zheng overcame 20-year-old Mirza 6-4 1-6 6-1 in a clash lasting almost two hours.
"It was tough," a beaming Zheng told reporters. "Everyone was supporting Sania, so I had to keep going in the final set."
Mirza had the vocal backing of the crowd throughout the tennis tournament, with hundreds of Indian expatriates flocking to watch their nation's young sporting icon play each day.
Zheng needed courtside attention in the second set due to thigh strain but forced a series of errors from Mirza in the third to win comfortably.
Mirza, who dumped Chinese top seed Li Na out of the competition in the semifinals, was full of praise for her opponent after she rattled off precise two-handed ground strokes to win key rallies in the third set.
"On the whole I should have done better," said a dejected Mirza after collecting her second silver medal.
Mirza, who collected a warning after hurling her racket into the ground in frustration, denied the pressure of Indian expectation got to her.
"I don't feel pressure, it only motivates me," she said. "That's why I'm still smiling. It's great so many people came here to support me today."
Mirza later gained some compensation by partnering Leander Paes to win the mixed doubles -- defeating seventh seeds Satoshi Iwabuchi and Akiko Morigami from Japan 7-5 5-7 6-2.
Paes was returning to the court just minutes after winning the men's doubles title with team-mate Mahesh Bhupathi.