"I don’t pray for winning matches, I just prayed for a normal elbow": Zheng Qinwen laments constant injury struggles amid stop start return to tennis

Zheng Qinwen returned to competitive tennis this Monday, February 9, 2026, with a hard-fought 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory over Sofia Kenin at the Qatar Open. The 23-year-old Chinese star has been sidelined since Wimbledon 2025 due to a persistent elbow injury that required surgery.

After retiring in the third round of the China Open later that year and postponing multiple planned returns, Monday marked her first full match on the WTA tour since her operation. Her current ranking is No. 26, rising to 23 in the live ranking.

Zheng’s return was cautious and meticulously planned. After the China Open retirement, she focused entirely on rehabilitation, ensuring her elbow would sustain competitive play. Her victory over Kenin reflects not just physical recovery but the confidence that comes from months of careful preparation and progressive training. Doha represents a critical step in regaining rhythm and match fitness, with Zheng now aiming to reestablish herself in the top tier of women’s tennis.

Physically, Zheng is optimistic but realistic about her comeback. She stressed that returning from injury is rarely a linear process, and that each day can bring ups and downs. “I think when you come back from an injury, you’re never completely pain-free,” commented the Paris 2024 Olympic gold medalist in a press conference. “There’s always up and down portions. Sometimes, when you wake up, you feel better. Sometimes, you wake up and feel worse.”

The mental adjustment of coping with prior uncertainty and rebuilding trust in her elbow has been as demanding as the rehabilitation itself. Zheng also discussed the challenges of long periods without match play. Training alone offers no immediate feedback, and progress can feel abstract compared to the clarity of a tournament. Watching top players across the tour helped her stay engaged, providing insight into competitive standards while she recovered.

“When you see how much time has passed, it starts to get difficult because you’re used to training but now you’re not getting feedback. When you play a tournament, at least you get feedback from winning or losing, you know where you need to improve. You don’t get feedback from continuing to train.”

“During the Australian Open, I could only serve 140-150 km/hr with my elbow. If I said that I wasn’t worried, that’s a lie. I was very worried in that moment. But I can only keep myself calm. I can’t do anything. But somehow, I’m very lucky that my elbow started to feel better. I’m really glad. I just wish my elbow could keep going at this stage and let’s keep fighting.”

Her confidence in her physical condition was evident in Doha, where she maintained serve and movement throughout a three-set match. Zheng explained that she could now sustain high intensity for hours, a level of durability that had been absent during her prior injury setbacks.

“I would say my elbow right now is really at a good stage and I could have kept going for another two hours serving like this!”aseguró la former world No. 4. “I wanted to come back really strong. I’m glad I could do that in the first match because tennis, you need to be consistent, not only one round. I would say, just stay calm and let’s go for the next round.”

During her absence, Zheng reflected on the precarious nature of her recovery. At the China Open, her elbow lacked full extension and flexion, leaving her uncertain if she would ever regain full function. “When I was at the China Open, my elbow still didn’t have full extension or the flexion. At one moment, I thought my elbow would stay like this forever, that I would never be able to bend my right arm like I can bend my left.

She revealed that during this period she focused on recovery rather than immediate match results, even praying simply for normal movement rather than victories. “I was praying, I don’t know if it was to God or something else, but I just wanted my elbow to get back to normal. I don’t pray for winning matches I just prayed for a normal elbow.”

Zheng also kept in touch with the sport from afar, following major tournaments and top players iwhich helped maintain her competitive instincts. “When I was playing, I don’t watch too much tennis, but when I was off tennis for six months, I put up a big screen for the Australian Open and a smaller screen next to play men’s and women’s matches at the same time.” “I was able to follow the most interesting players: Sabalenka, Sinner, Djokovic, Alcaraz, Rybakina. I’ve been watching all those matches and it felt fun to just watch tennis on the screen as a fan.”

Finally, Zheng expressed readiness for challenges ahead, including the possibility of five-set matches - after Craig Tiley, Australian Open chief proposes best-of-5 set women's matches from quarterfinals onward - a format she has long been curious to experience. “I’m not afraid of five sets. I would say I’d benefit from it, and I’ve always wondered the feeling of playing five sets, so maybe one day I’ll have a chance to try.”

Zheng will return to the court this Tuesday for the second round against qualifier Alycia Parks, who enters confident after defeating 15th seed Diana Shnaider in the first round. The head-to-head stands at 1-1, though their last encounter dates back to 2023, and they have never met on hard courts.