Zheng Qinwen responds to withdrawal: Considering long-term career, will undergo MRI examination

On September 29th Beijing time, Zheng Qinwen retired injured in the third round of the China Open women's singles against Czech player Noskova, with the score at 4-6/6-3/0-3. She explained at the press conference that her withdrawal was a decision made for the sake of her long-term career, and she will undergo an MRI scan; when she will be back on the court is still unknown.

Zheng Qinwen admitted that although participating in the China Open was somewhat rushed, it was still the right choice mainly to test the recovery of her elbow. Regarding her withdrawal, she said, "The first set was fine, but the second set might have been too much. By the third set, hitting was putting too much strain on my body. I didn’t want a more serious injury, so I chose to be cautious. It’s unfortunate my body couldn’t handle the pressure, so I regretfully had to retire, but I’m still very happy to have played in front of everyone at the Diamond Court."

Zheng revealed that the pain mainly occurred during serving, which also affected her performance today: “I tried to play stronger and more aggressively than before, but my mind was distracted because I was worried about putting too much strain on my body with these attacks. I remember at last year’s Olympics, I was focused and determined to give my all, even if it meant playing through injury. But today was completely different; my mind was full of doubts, so I couldn’t perform at my best.”

Regarding her future plans, Zheng said she will first have an MRI to confirm the condition of her elbow and then discuss her next steps with her team.

“I’m not exactly sure about the upcoming plans yet; I need to go back and see what’s going on inside. This is my first recovery after surgery, so I won’t take any risky decisions but will focus on my longer career ahead. I still feel positive—I can keep playing tennis, and this is a crucial moment to overcome the final obstacles.”

(Edited by Wang Fei, photos courtesy of the event)