Qinwen Zheng came out of nowhere and impressed the entire Tennis community including a legend of the Game, Rod Laver. Zheng displayed exciting gameplay in her quarter-final match against Russias Anna Kalinskayain at the 2024 Australian Open.
In the post-match interview, Zheng was questioned whether she knew who Rod Laver was and whether she was aware of his presence in the stadium, to which she replied that she knew who Laver was but wasn’t aware of his presence in the stadium
‘Of course I know the guy, but I didn’t know he was watching. I focus on the green ball only and on the opponent,’ she said, indicating her level of concentration during a game.
Zheng asked whether she knew Rod Laver was watching.
"Of course I know the guy, but I didn't know he was watching. I focus on the green ball only and on the opponent."
— The Tennis Podcast (@TennisPodcast) January 24, 2024
Qinwen Zheng didn’t know she made it to the top 10 in the WTA rankings
Qinwen Zheng came into the tournament as 12th seeded but she performed beyond expectations and silenced her critics. She made her way to the semi-finals by performing beyond expectations. Zheng is set to face Dayana Yastremska in the semi-finals. She has to carry on with the same intensity if she wants to proceed to the final
Zheng’s spectacular performance in the 2024 Australian Open earned her entry into the top 10 WTA rankings.
It is surprising to know that even Qinwen Zheng doesn’t know that she has achieved this feat. Jelena Dokic asked Zheng in the post-match conference about how she was feeling after a sure entrance into the top 10 WTA rankings and being on the same roster with the best Women players in the world.
However, Zheng seemed clueless and had no idea what Dokic was talking about as she replied “Thanks for telling me” which shocked Dokic along with all the viewers and witnesses, Dokic tried to clear the air by inquiring about whether she even knew about the news, to which she replied “I didn’t know. Nobody tells me anything.”
Jelena Dokic tells Zheng Qinwen that she'll be in the top 10 after this tournament.
"Thanks for telling me."
"You didn't know?"
"I didn't know. Nobody tells me anything."
— The Tennis Podcast (@TennisPodcast) January 24, 2024
Qinwen Zheng is completely focused on her semi-final match-up against Ukrainian tennis player Dayana Yastremska, who is coming on the back of a confident victory over Linda Nosková. Zheng has to keep her focus intact and play with more vigor and intent against Yastremska if she wants to taste victory.
Read More – Dayana Yastremska Scripts History; Joins Former WTA No.1 Martina Hingis
