The 7 games of the Australian Open netted more than RMB 8 million; the peak ratings exceeded 1.5%, ranking first in the country at the same time; the topic "Zheng Qinwen won the Australian Open women's singles runner-up" topped the hot search list... Although Zheng Qinwen He missed out on the Australian Open championship, but his influence is really huge.

　　We once had Yao Ming, Liu Xiang, and Li Na at the same time, and we once thought that there would be a steady stream of latecomers after them. As a result, after these three retired, China really lacked sports superstars with world-class influence. Let alone Yao Ming, the achievements of Sun Jihai and Yi Jianlian will be difficult for anyone to come close to in many years.

　　Because of this, Zheng Qinwen's results are so exciting, but not satisfying.

　　We hope that the 2024 Australian Open will be a new starting point for Zheng Qinwen’s career.

　　Looking at the technical statistics, Sabalenka is a little better than Zheng Qinwen in every aspect, especially strength, which can be called "one force can defeat ten" in women's tennis. There are relatively objective comments on the Internet: first, it is indeed impossible to beat; second, it is a pity not to win the championship, but it is not unfair.

　　Facing failure and being a supporting role in the spotlight is also a valuable experience. The next step is to go all the way to the dark side and strive to become stronger than Sabalenka? Or enrich your playing style and make your offense and defense more balanced? This is a choice that Zheng Qinwen and the coaching staff need to face.

　　Fortunately, Zheng Qinwen is only 21 years old and still has plenty of time to improve himself. Based on the current open competitive situation in women's tennis, we can boldly predict that Zheng Qinwen may have a brief trough in the next few years, but there is definitely a chance to come back again, and in the end there may be more than one Grand Slam champion.

　　Secondly, we also hope that Zheng Qinwen can really "break the circle".

　　Chinese sports have won a lot of gold medals in recent years, but their influence in the world is not enough. Chinese football has "broken the circle", but it has all negative impacts.

　　Thinking back to the 1998 Football World Cup, all the aunts selling vegetables on the street knew that there was Ronaldo who was good at football. This is the real influence. Nowadays, if you tell an old man on the street that Zheng Qinwen serves at a speed of 180 kilometers per hour, he will probably have no idea. But if you tell him, "This little girl played seven games and earned 8 million," his eyes will definitely light up - this is It's almost "breaking the circle".

　　There are always people comparing Li Na to Zheng Qinwen. This is inevitable, just like there are always people comparing Maradona to Messi. Maradona's social significance and historical status are difficult for Messi to replicate, but Messi also has achievements that Maradona cannot match. Messi is not Maradona 2.0, and Zheng Qinwen is not Li Na 2.0. We hope that Zheng Qinwen can "break the circle", develop in all directions, and even surpass his predecessors.

　　Zheng Qinwen’s total income in 2023 is US$7.2 million, ranking 15th in the global female athlete income list. After Li Na won the French Open in 2011, she won 13 top endorsements including Rolex and Mercedes-Benz, plus competition bonuses, commercial Event attendance fees, etc., the total annual income is equivalent to RMB 138 million. China's GDP in 2011 was 48 trillion yuan, and China's GDP in 2023 was 126 trillion yuan. If Zheng Qinwen can achieve Li Na's achievements on the court, with the blessing of the times, Zheng Qinwen may be more successful than Li Na in business.

　　In addition, we also have a small expectation: Zheng Qinwen, like Li Na, will become a representative of independent women in China and become a household name and international superstar.

　　At that time, Yao Ming, Liu Xiang, and Li Na not only had outstanding sports achievements, but more importantly, they were full of personality. They were a window for the world to observe China. It turns out that Chinese young people also have such full personality.

　　In the past year, many overseas online bloggers have visited Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Chongqing to see the beautiful scenery, taste delicious food, and take high-speed trains, and they have a high number of clicks overseas. This shows that the world still doesn’t know enough about China. Therefore, we hope that our top athletes will not only perform well on the sports field, but also fully demonstrate the bold and confident personality of Chinese young people in the new era. I hope that Zheng Qinwen will not only be a business card for Chinese tennis and Chinese sports, but also a business card for China. If you want to wear a crown, you must first bear its weight. This is the mission that top athletes must shoulder.

　　Sun Qing, commentator of Yangtze Evening News/Ziniu News