Where She Fits

She was one of the fastest players this sport has ever produced, and the most concrete definition of the word “persistence.”

Playing Style

  • Blazing close-table speed from a position right at the edge, compressing her opponent’s thinking time
  • Extremely tight two-wing transitions, dictating the rhythm of every rally
  • Early-timing backhand flicks and blocks as key scoring weapons

Career and Key Moments

Her World Cup record is unmatched — she won the Women’s World Cup singles in 2009, 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2019, more than anyone in the event’s history. She won women’s team gold with China at the 2016 Rio Olympics, and at the 2019 World Championships in Budapest finally claimed the first World Championships women’s singles title of her career. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics she took mixed doubles silver with Xu Xin.

What She Left Behind

From being hailed as a prodigy in her teens to winning the World Championships singles in her late twenties, her long curve makes one thing clear: a late peak is not a smaller one.

Remember this: five World Cup titles proved her ability; that late World Championships title proved her patience.