Zheng Qinwen says she has never spoken to Peng Shuai and is focused only on her tennis after being quizzed about the former tennis player following her first round win at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.
The 20-year-old was reluctant to get involved in the ongoing case surrounding Shuai who some fear is being censored by authorities after accusing a former government official of sexual assault. Since then, the former world No.1 doubles player has made limited public appearances with the majority of them being through state-controlled media. Her social media account on Weibo and search results for her name were also removed from the internet by authorities. After the allegation, Shuai told L’Equipe that an ‘enormous misunderstanding’ occurred during an interview where she was also accompanied by Wang Kan who is a member of the Chinese Olympic Committee. Although some, including the WTA, continue to have concerns.
“I don’t know how she is. I never talked to her in my life,” 20-year-old Qiwen said when asked about her compatriot on Monday. “I’m just a beginner in the WTA still. I’m just trying to focus on my tennis and enjoy playing in front of my people.’
“I think she’s pretty well in China. Just having a normal life. But honestly, I don’t know how she is. I just focus more on myself,” she added.
Qiwen says she has not spoken with anybody else on the Tour about the case and ‘just stays close to her team.’ The WTA had suspended their relationship with China after calling for an investigation into the matter. Steve Simon, who is the head of the organization, previously said that he had ‘serious doubts’ that Peng was free from the control of authorities in her country.
However, this suspension came to an end earlier this month with the WTA admitting that they will unlikely reach an agreement with China over the matter. In a statement, they said ‘Peng can not be forgotten through this process.’ However, China Sports analyst Mark Dreyer points out that the WTA’s official press release to Chinese media didn’t mention Peng Shuai in any capacity.
Despite the controversy, Qiwen is relishing the prospect of being able to play tennis in her home country once again.
“I’m so happy the tournaments in China will be back because I’m really excited to play in front of my people. I really miss China because this has been a long time. I never have time to go back there.” She said.
“I will have more time to go back to my hometown and meet all my family and to show my tennis over there. I was really happy to hear about it.”
Zhang defeated Alycia Parks 6-4, 6-4, in her opening match in Stuttgart. She will next play top seed Iga Swiatek who beat her twice last year in three sets.
