Heavy fog continued to shroud China's capital city of Beijing on Saturday morning and visibility was reduced to less than one kilometer, with some areas even being below 40 meters.
The Beijing Meteorological Observatory continued a yellow alert for heavy fog at 06:00 on Saturday morning.
Affected by the dense fog, Beijing Capital International Airport is scheduled for 1,218 flight departures and arrivals, and will handle 194,400 passenger trips on the day.
Meanwhile, Beijing Daxing International Airport also experienced heavy fog. The airport initiated relevant procedures and is fully committed to ensuring flight operations and passenger services.
Due to the thick fog, 22 sections of expressways in Beijing and Hebei, as well as 457 toll stations in Shaanxi, Tianjin, Shanxi, Shandong, Heilongjiang and Jilin had been closed by 09:00.
Dense fog envelops Beijing with poor visibility
China's tennis ace Zheng Qinwen on Friday expressed her confidence in delivering the best performance at the WTA Finals debut against World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka, saying that she has the strength to beat anyone.
Zheng, 23, will make her tournament debut in Riyadh of Saudi Arabia and face off her long time rival Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus in Purple Group of WTA Finals not earlier than 23:00 Saturday Beijing Time.
The World No.7 said that she feels great and looks forward to the forthcoming matches against the world's top women tennis players.
"At the moment I feel like I'm in a relaxed frame of mind going into this finals. And for myself, I hope I can play my own tennis game, because I always believe that as long as I play my own game, I have the strength to beat anyone. But in finals, you will have to face up to very strong opponents at the very beginning, which means that you don't get so much buffer time like in tours. You have to stay in a high state of play, then you fight from the first score to the last. Because the players here all master at key points, sometimes the chances just slip away if you are not careful. I think I've got to be super focused to stand out from the finals," Zheng said.
Zheng acknowledged Sabalenka as a formidable opponent but remained confident in her own abilities.
"I know Sabalenka is definitely a very tough opponent, but I think I have what it takes to beat her. The question is only when I can really beat her on the tennis court. Like I said earlier, it's crucial to get hold of the key points when playing against her," Zheng said.
Earlier on Oct 27, Zheng defeated Sofia Kenin of the United States 7-6 (5), 6-3 to clinch the title at the WTA 500 Pan Pacific Open. She has been adapting to the altitude changes as she transits to Riyadh, the Saudi capital with an altitude about 600 meters higher than Tokyo.
She also took a moment to thank her fans.
"Thanks to the fans who follow me, I will play the next match in Riyadh, and you'll see me on TV, or see me on court if you want to watch my match on-site. I will give my best effort to deliver the best performance in Riyadh," she said.
From Nov 2 to Nov 9, Zheng will join Barbora Krejcikova, Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina, Jasmine Paolini and Jessica Pegula at the star-studded season-ending tournament of WTA Finals.
The top-two finishers of each group will advance to the semifinals on November 8 and the two winners will compete for the title on November 9.
Zheng is the first Chinese singles player to qualify for the WTA Finals since Li Na in 2013, when the latter finished runner-up after narrowly losing to Serena Williams.
Zheng Qinwen poised for WTA Finals in Riyadh
