This article first appeared in the Nov/Dec 2014 issue of World Gaming magazine.
Since turning professional back in 1999, Li Na has gone on to become not only one of the most respected players on the WTA circuit but the most significant tennis player China has ever produced. In her 15 years on tour she won two grand slams, nine WTA tournaments and almost US$17 million in prize money. But all good things must come to an end and after an injury-plagued 2014 Li eventually called it quits in September. WGM pays tribute to this wonderful sporting star.
Chinese tennis star Li Na stunned a nation when she announced her retirement from the sport in a letter to her fans posted on social media on 18 September. China’s first and only grand slam singles champion, Li made history when she broke through to claim the French Open in 2011, then added a second grand slam when she won the Australian Open earlier this year having twice made the final previously in 2011 and 2013.
However, despite reaching a career high ranking of world number two following her Melbourne triumph, Li found herself facing growing problems with a long-term knee injury. After being eliminated at Wimbledon in the third round, she was forced into a lengthy stint on the sidelines that saw her miss the US Open and ultimately ended her remarkable career.
“Most people in the tennis world know that my career has been marked by my troubled right knee,” Li wrote in her retirement letter. “The black brace I wear over it when I step on the court has become my tennis birth mark. And while the brace completes my tennis look, the knee problems have at times overtaken my life.
“After four knee surgeries and hundreds of shots injected into my knee weekly to alleviate swelling and pain, my body is begging me to stop the pounding. My previous three surgeries were on my right knee. My most recent knee surgery took place this July and was on my left knee. After a few weeks of post-surgery recovery, I tried to go through all the necessary steps to get back on the court.
“While I’ve come back from surgery in the past, this time it felt different. One of my goals was to recover as fast as I could in order to be ready for the first WTA tournament in my hometown of Wuhan. As hard as I tried to get back to being 100%, my body kept telling me that, at 32, I will not be able to compete at the top level ever again. The sport is just too competitive, too good, to not be 100%.”
Nevertheless, Li exits the professional sporting world on a high given her tremendous start to the 2014 season in Australia.
“2014 has become one of the most significant years in my career and my life,” she said. “This year was full of amazing highlights, which included winning my second Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open and sharing the extraordinary experience with my country, my team, my husband and my fans.
“Winning a Grand Slam title this year and achieving a ranking of World No.2 is the way I would like to leave competitive tennis. As hard as it’s been to come to this decision, I am at peace with it. I have no regrets. I was not supposed to be here in the first place, remember? Not many people believed in my talent and my abilities, yet I found a way to persevere, to prove them (and sometimes myself!) wrong.
“I’ve succeeded on the global stage in a sport that a few years ago was in its infancy in China. What I’ve accomplished for myself is beyond my wildest dreams. What I accomplished for my country is one of my most proud achievements.”
The good news for China is that Li won’t be lost to tennis entirely and will, in fact, play a significant role in the sport’s growth into the future. Although she has cited one reason for her retirement being the desire to start a family with her husband Jiang Shan, she also plans to launch her very own tennis academy in her home country with an exact location to be decided in the coming months.
“My contributions to the growth of the sport in China are very special to me,” she said. “But I don’t want to stop here. Together with IMG, my management company, we are putting together various plans on how we will continue to grow the sport of tennis in China. These plans include opening the Li Na Tennis Academy, which will provide scholarships for the future generation of Chinese tennis stars. I will also stay involved in the Right to Play, an organization dedicated to helping underprivileged children overcome challenges through sport. My philanthropic work will expand in scope as I continue to dedicate myself to helping those in need. What was once just a dream in China today is a reality.”
WGM would like to congratulate Li on a wonderful career that has opened the door for aspiring tennis players in China, as evidenced by Peng Shuai’s run to the US Open semi-finals this year.
In tribute to Li’s achievements, we take a look back at some of the stories we have run on her career over the years as she went about becoming a national treasure.
Chinese tennis arrives at the world stage
Until now tennis has never been one of China’s biggest or most successful sports. All that has just changed as two Chinese women announced the country’s arrival on the world stage.
The blinding heat of Melbourne in summer may be tennis’ toughest test. It’s the first Grand Slam of the year and all the best players in the world converge on Australia to claim the coveted title. For the seasoned pros of the tour, their goal is to win another Grand Slam which is how they will be judged in years to come. For the lesser known players every Grand Slam offers them their breakthrough opportunity. A huge pay day and a move up the rankings is the obvious reward. Even more importantly a good showing at a big tournament like this announces a player’s arrival to the world. It all sounds so easy, but grabbing this opportunity is one of the hardest obstacles in world sport.
This Australian Open will be remembered as the championship that two young Chinese girls showed there was a new sleeping giant in world tennis. Li Na and Zheng Jie were drawn on different sides of the draw. Anything after the second round would always be a bonus. Both girls made history when they cruised into the fourth round which was the first time two Chinese players had ever made it into the fourth round of a Grand Slam.
Not only did they win their fourth round clashes they also won their quarter finals rewriting the record books again. Serena Williams and Justine Henin stood in front of the girls and unfortunately a Grand Slam Final was not in either of their destinies, this time.
It is a remarkable step for a country that has traditionally only ever performed well in the doubles – Zheng and Yan Zi teamed up to win the 2006 Australian Open and Wimbledon crowns. In fact, 2006 was a breakthrough year for China with Li becoming the first Chinese player to reach the quarter-final of a Grand Slam tournament at Wimbledon. Li and Zheng also competed in the first all-Chinese WTA Tour final in Portugal.
It has been a gradual build up over the last few years as Zheng shocked the tennis world when she reached the semi-finals of Wimbledon and achieved a career-high ranking of number 15 – the highest ever by a Chinese player. But Li matched Zheng by finishing the year ranked number 15 in the world after a form revival that saw her reach the quarter-finals of the US Open. Zheng was happy to tell the press how hard a struggle it has been for the girls after one of her bitterly fought matches at the Australian Open.
“We have been working so hard and we never give up on any match. We just play our best and try to hold on to every match. Step by step is the philosophy we have both used.”
The future looks bright for women’s tennis in China as both girls have quite a few more years left to play on the circuit. The biggest story to come out of all this is the impact that these results will have on the game of tennis in China. Young Chinese will be taking up the game in record numbers as they have been shown that they can compete at the very top level against the best in the world.
The next few years look very bright for the Chinese girls with the prospect of their two stars being ranked in the top ten in the world. There are a further four Chinese women – all aged 21 or less – ranked inside the top 225. It’s been a great start to 2010 and hopefully the Year of the Tiger will be a good one for our girls.
Lethal Li falls just one short
Chinese tennis has announced its arrival to the world, thanks to Li Na and her incredible performance in this year’s Australian Open. Kim Clijsters triumphed in the third set of the epic final but it won’t be long before Li Na claims the ultimate prize in women’s tennis.
China’s greatest ever tennis player has fallen at the last hurdle, just one match short of winning a prestigious Grand Slam singles title. The first Chinese player ever to reach a Grand Slam singles final lost to Belgium great Kim Clijsters, who was clearly the best player in this year’s tournament. After Li won the first set it looked as though an upset might be on the cards, but years of experience at the highest level saw the Belgium great guts out an impressive victory. Li had beaten Clijsters earlier in the year at the Medibank International in Sydney but a Grand Slam final is a different tale altogether. Falling so agonisingly close to a historic victory will be painful for Li in the short term, but the experience will prove invaluable for the future encounters she will inevitably face.
In the semi finals she came up against world number one Caroline Wozniacki. Li had met and lost to the Danish superstar earlier in 2011 at the Hong Kong Tennis Classic. Wozniacki, still without a Grand Slam win despite her number one ranking, was also desperate to show she has what it takes to succeed in a Grand Slam tournament. The Dane started as a warm favourite at 1/2 on, with Li the outsider at around 6/4. The first set went easily to Wozniacki as Li made too many unforced errors. Li went down a break in the second set and was forced to save a match point as Wozniacki attempted to serve out the match. Then Li began to find her rhythm and the unforced errors were turning into clear winners. She fought back and won the second set and headed into the third clearly on top. Even though she went down a break early in the third set, she always looked in control. In a fine display of hard hitting, gut-wrenching women’s tennis Li prevailed over the luckless but valiant Wozniacki.
With a powerful right hand, Li turned professional in 1999 and has since amassed over US$4.5 million in prize money. Before the 2011 Australian Open Li had won four WTA and 19 ITF titles.
Lethal Li proves WGM right
China’s world class champion Li Na has become the first Chinese Grand Slam Champion, as predicted by World Gaming magazine.
Li Na’s victory over Francesca Schiavone is a great day for her country.
“Today is a dream come true,” Li said.
“China has never had a Grand Slam champion so that’s why in China so many players are working so hard. Because the dream is they can be the top player or win a Grand Slam.”
“I got a text message from my friend. They said people were crying in China because they saw the national flag going up”
Schiavone admitted the style of Li’s play caused her problems and paid credit to her opponent. The defending champion had no answer to Li Na’s game and Li came away with an easy two set win.
“I think the style that she played, hitting it really deep, meant I couldn’t play my spin really high. She played at a really high level through the first set and until 2-1 or 3-1,” Schiavone said.
“Then I tried to push more, to risk more, and her level dropped. But it’s normal. Tennis is always like this. I think she deserved to win this final. She fought a lot and she played well on the clay”.
Well done to Li Na and congratulations to World Gaming readers who took our advice and backed Li Na to win the French Open. Enjoy your winnings courtesy of this great Chinese champ!
Courage of a Dragon
Once again, it was Li Na proudly flying the flag for China at the Australian Open tennis tournament. Li made her second Australian Open final but once again just missed out on the ultimate prize.
Li Na capped off an incredible Australian Open going down to Russian Victoria Azarenka in one of the most memorable finals ever played.
Azarenka, to her credit, overcame a somewhat hostile crowd to make it back-to-back titles in the first Grand Slam of the year.
Li Na battles her injuries valiantly during the Australian Open final
Both players consistently broke each other’s serve during a game that went right down to the wire. Li Na won the first set, but rolled her ankle early in the second, necessitating a medical time-out. She eventually lost the second set and was looking good in the third and final set until her ankle let her down once more, causing her to fall awkwardly, hitting her head in the process.
I blacked out for a few seconds and couldn’t see anything. When I came to, the trainer was asking me to look at her finger.
– Li Na
The courage demonstrated by Li was admirable, and if she continues with this kind of form, she will eventually earn another Grand Slam victory to add to her 2011 French Open title. She is one of the most liked players on the circuit and in the post match interview still had enough class to show her humorous side, saying, “I thought I was on a tennis court – not a hospital!”
