‘Never Felt So Hungry’- Qinwen Zheng’s Emotional Words Show How Olympics Glory Will Propel Career to New Heights

Court Philippe Chatrier was a sea of Chinese flags on Saturday, buzzing with excitement and anticipation. Qinwen Zheng was all set to dominate the tennis court once again, this time against Donna Vekic in the finals. Fresh off her impressive victory against World No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the semifinals, Zheng’s confidence was palpable. The Croatian fans were out in full force, their cheers echoing across the stadium as they tried to outnumber the enthusiastic Chinese supporters. But Zheng was unshaken. She soaked in the atmosphere, the excitement clear on her face, ready to prove herself once more. And as she cruised through the victory, the joy was evident.

Zheng defeated Vekic in the finals in complete dominance. The World No. 21 completely felt at bay as she failed to decode the Zheng riddle before conceding a defeat in straight sets 6-2, 6-3. While Vekic seemed to pounce back on certain occasions during the match, her attempts were in vain as the Chinese star looked totally determined for the gold medal. And the 21-year-old herself expressed her true emotions. 

Speaking after winning the Gold for her country at the Summer Olympics, Zheng revealed the hunger she had for the medal. “I never felt so hungry like this, to win one match. I could give everything that I can, but I know tennis doesn’t work like this. It’s not that you give everything you can that you get all the time the result you want..”

For the unversed, no Chinese, man or woman, had ever won a gold medal in tennis singles. Hence, Zheng’s victory has etched her name in the annals of Chinese tennis history, and the star player could not be more proud of herself. 

“I beat the pressure, I beat the limit of myself. I didn’t know before that I was able to go win five matches in a row… I broke through my limits and in the future it doesn’t matter how young I am, I will remember this moment and it will always cheer me up.”

Interestingly, Zheng was not the favorite title contender for many at this Olympics. The No. 6 seed player failed to achieve significantly in the French Open, where she lost in the third round. And with the Olympics taking place on the same clay courts, her performance was a clear surprise. But, this is not the first time when Zheng expressed her pride in herself and her country.

After defeating Iga Swiatek in the semifinals and confirming a medal for her country, the Chinese star was exhilarated. “It really does mean everything. I always knew I could do it. But it’s different (if) you know you can — and you show it. And today, I really showed it,” she said. “I’m so proud of myself,” Zheng added. “I’m so proud of my country.” And as Zheng creates history, she has also followed in the footsteps of several tennis greats like Andy Muray.

Zheng repeats Olympic’s bizarre custom after victory

The evening is a must-remember for Qinweng Zheng. The WTA star, besides winning the first Olympic gold for her country in tennis singles, has kept a bizarre custom of the Olympics alive as she repeats the history that involves great names like Andy Murray!

Every time an Olympic tennis tournament rolls around lately, the tennis community joins some behavioral norms in heading off the rails. This is evident this year as well, as another name is added to the string of Olympic gold medal winners who have never won majors — or had never won one at the time when they clinched their first medal at the Olympics. Several players like Andy Murray, Alexander Zverev, Belinda Bencic, Monica Puig, Elena Dementieva, Nicolas Massu, and Lindsay Davenport have first clinched a Gold medal at the Olympics. And the latest to join the list is Zheng, as well as her opponent Donna Vekic.

As the season progresses for the Chinese star player, it would be interesting to see if she can continue her momentum and win big at other events as well.