Zheng Qinwen: Missing the feeling of competition, fans are the reason for my comeback

On September 27th Beijing time, Zheng Qinwen declared her comeback with a win at the Diamond Court. Since her first-round exit at Wimbledon, the Chinese star had been away from competition, undergoing minimally invasive surgery on her right elbow and a recovery period. After 88 days, she returned to the court and achieved a victorious opening match.

After the match, Zheng Qinwen expressed that although she felt more relaxed and fulfilled during her recovery from injury, she deeply missed the sensation of competing. "I really missed these players. While resting, I watched others compete on TV. I missed the feeling of playing, the adrenaline rush on the court, and I also missed the audience very much."

Regarding her performance in the match, Zheng Qinwen said, "I am very satisfied with my baseline play. Although there were occasional small mistakes, overall the wins outweighed the losses." She added, "Perhaps my serve hasn’t reached full speed yet. I observed that the average speed is around 175 km/h. I believe if I fully recover, it could improve a bit more. That might be the last 20%."

After the first match test, Zheng Qinwen feels her physical condition is currently quite good. "Of course, the area where I had surgery still feels a bit tired. I anticipated this early on, but I think as the matches progress, as long as I protect it properly, I’ll feel better and better. We will discuss with the team and make decisions as the tournament goes on."

When asked about the significance of winning her first match after returning, Zheng Qinwen shared more details about choosing to come back at this year’s China Open. "The meaning is that it’s the first match after my return, here at the Diamond Court in Beijing. I feel very happy. Missing the US Open was a big disappointment for me, but this comeback brought a great match. I also saw that the fans were very supportive and happy to see me again. Feeling their enthusiasm gives me more motivation to play."

"I think the main reason for participating in this China Open is because of the fans. As I mentioned, my team was not very supportive of me playing yet because I haven’t fully recovered. But the enthusiasm from everyone during training was overwhelming, and I insisted that I really wanted to continue competing in front of them."

In the next round, Zheng Qinwen will face Czech player and 26th seed Noskova, who she has beaten in both of their previous two encounters. Looking ahead to the match, Zheng Qinwen said, "She is indeed a tough opponent because her pace is very fast, from what I know about her. But I definitely need to discuss tactics with my team. She’s a difficult player to beat. I also want to see how my body recovers and hope to perform even better in the next match. See you next round, and I hope the fans will watch me closely."

(Text and editing: Dato, Photos: Gao Jun)