Chinese women hoping to clinch an Olympic berth will have to prove themselves at the French Open if their Beijing dreams are to continue.
Yan Zi (left) and Peng Shuai, both heading to the French Open with their Chinese teammates, expect that a strong performance at Roland Garros will help them secure Olympic tickets to August's Beijing Games. (Reuters)
The team, led by singles star Li Na and Grand Slam champions Zheng Jie and Yan Zi, hopes to land medals in both singles and doubles events at the Olympic Green Tennis Center in August. But the first hurdle is making sure everyone has a ticket to the Games.
Whoever is ranked in the top 56 WTA World Rankings in singles (top 10 in doubles) on June 9 will win a trip to the Olympics. Of China's women, only No 36 Li and No 44 Yan would qualify based on the current rankings. If the team again falters in Sunday's French Open, tennis for China in the Olympics may turn out to be a flop.
"For me the number one thing is to let my girls play without pressure," said national team head coach Jiang Hongwei. "Time is urgent, and the French Open will be their last try before the Olympic entries are decided. We have put in so much effort since 2004 and we have drawn so much attention from the whole nation, so we don't want to let people down.
"But the situation is very tough for us, I have to say."
Jiang is indeed in a tough position. All his top players have battled through injuries and inconsistent form since 2006 when five of his players were ranked in the top 100. Li and Zheng were both out of action for six months with injuries last year, while Peng Shuai, who teams with doubles ace Sun Tiantian, has yet to show her top form this year.
Gao Shenyang, vice-director of the Chinese Tennis Association (CTA), admits that the intense pressure seems to be the reason behind his players recent struggles.
"Can you imagine it?" said Gao. "You buy a newspaper, you see yourself on it and the story is about how you win the Olympic gold medal. The pressure is too much for the girls.