Zheng Qinwen admits change of heart about having 'friends' on the tour after Emma Navarro fracas

China’s Zheng Qinwen has apparently seen a change of heart when it comes to having friends on the tour. The 22-year-old is currently taking part at the Indian Wells, where she booked her place in round 16 after beating Lulu Sun in straight sets with a score of 6-4 and 7-5.

Talking after the match, Zheng was asked about whether she is looking to have friends on the tour, to which she responded by saying: "Actually, there are two people in the tennis community whom I really want to befriend. But I haven’t taken that step yet. I’ll talk about it once I do." Those comments are in contrast to what she said previously about having friends.

"My answer is very clear: I prefer to always keep distance with players,” she said. ”Have a lot of competition with me. I am, like, type of sensitive with the heart. If I become friends with someone and I have to compete with them on court, I feel I'm not able 100% focused and fighting. Once I figured out that, I decided don't try to make a friend on tour because there's so many people outside of tennis world. Why I have to just make friends here?"

Those comments came after Zheng was criticised by America’s Emma Navarro after their clash at the Paris Olympics. Navarro accused the Chinese tennis star of being too ‘cut-throat’ during the contest. "I just told her I didn't respect her as a competitor,” she said after that match. “I think she goes about things in a pretty cut-throat way. It makes for a locker room that doesn't have a lot of camaraderie.”