Zhang Shuai

Zhang Shuai

Country (sports)	People's Republic of China
Residence	Tianjin, China
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9+1⁄2 in)
Plays	right; two-handed backhand
Prize money	US $97,884
Singles
Career record	111–63
Career titles	0 WTA, 9 ITF
Highest ranking	132 (23 July 2007)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	-
French Open	-
Wimbledon	-
US Open	first round (2008)
Doubles
Career record	44–42
Career titles	0 WTA, 3 ITF
Highest ranking	196 (23 July 2007)
Last updated on: 26 August 2008.

Zhang Shuai (born 21 January 1989 in Tianjin, China) is a professional female tennis player from China. As of 20 October 2008, she is the sixth-highest ranked women's singles player from China, at number 206.

Career

Early years

Zhang started playing tennis at age six.

2007

Zhang was a member of China's Fed Cup team in 2007.

In competitive singles, Zhang began the year world ranked No. 203, and despite losing her first three matches of year was propelled upwards into the World Top 200 at No. 200 by random fluctuations in the strength of the field around her by the time of her fourth tournament in mid-February. This position was short-lived as she continued to suffer disappointing results early in the year; but in April she scored one good victory over World No. 159 Lioudmila Skavronskaia, and subsequently took World No. 23 Tathiana Garbin to three sets before losing 4-6 in the third later the same month.

A period of breakthrough success on the ITF circuit follower, as she proceeded to win three back-to-back $25,000 titles and then one $50,000 title in China between late April and early June, dropping just two sets in twenty successive matches.

In late June, her ranking having soared from World No. 209 to a career high of World No. 153 on the strength of these successes, she extended her winning streak to 24 matches in a $25,000 event at Noto, Japan before losing in the final to Regina Kulikova whom she had just defeated in straight sets in the finals of both the two previous tournaments she won.

Undeterred, she returned to her winning ways at the next tournament she entered, another $25,000 event at Nagoya, Japan, after facing Kulikova in the final for the fourth tournament in succession. But the next week she lost in the final of a $25,000 event at Miyazaki, Japan, this time to Junri Namigata in straight sets; and a week later, now world-ranked No. 145, she could only reach the quarter-finals of a $25,000 event at Kirume, Japan before losing to Australian prospect Sophie Ferguson in three sets.

Nonetheless, once the results from her last tournaments had all been factored in, she reached a career high of World No. 132 on July 23rd.

Mixed results ensued for the rest of the year, after she was largely unsuccessful in trying her hand at higher-level tournaments, and she ended the year world-ranked a slightly lower No. 155.

2008

In August, Zhang qualified for the US Open women's singles main draw by winning three qualifying matches over Jorgelina Cravero, Stéphanie Dubois, and Melanie South. She lost to third seed Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia in the first round, 6–4 6–2.

2009

She reached the 3rd round at the Premier Mandatory event 2009 China Open after entering it World ranked No. 226 by defeating World No. 33 Iveta Benesova in straight sets and current World No. 1 Dinara Safina in two close sets, 7-5 7-6. These have been her first two victories over any player currently ranked in the Top 75 for reasons other than the early retirement of her opponent, and her first two victories over any player currently ranked in the Top 40 for any reason including the retirement of her opponent.

Personal

Zhang is coached by Yan Fang Fang. Her hobbies are eating and music. Her parents are Zhang Zhi Qiang and Wang Feng Qin.

Performance timelines

Singles performance timeline

Tournament	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	Career WR	Career win-loss
Grand Slams
Australian Open	-	-	-	Q1	Q3	0 / 0	0-0
French Open	-	-	-	-	Q2	0 / 0	0–0
Wimbledon	-	-	-	-	-	0 / 0	0-0
U.S. Open	-	-	-	Q2	1R	0 / 1	0-1
Grand Slam WR	0 / 0	0 / 0	0 / 0	0 / 0	0 / 1	0 / 1
Grand Slam win-loss	0-0	0-0	0-0	0-0	0-1		0-1
Year-end ranking	901	648	200	149

Q1 = made it to qualifying round one
Q2 = made it to qualifying round two
Q3 = made it to qualifying round three
1R = made it to tournament first round
WR = ratio of tournaments won to tournaments played

Women's doubles performance timeline

Tournament	2005	2006	2007	2008	Career WR	Career win-loss
Grand Slams
Australian Open	-	-	-	-	0 / 0	0-0
French Open	-	-	-	-	0 / 0	0–0
Wimbledon	-	-	-	-	0 / 0	0-0
U.S. Open	-	-	-	-	0 / 0	0-0
Grand Slam WR	0 / 0	0 / 0	0 / 0	0 / 0	0 / 0
Grand Slam win-loss	0-0	0-0	0-0	0-0		0-0
Year-end ranking	555	257	246

WR = ratio of tournaments won to tournaments played

See also

• Tennis in China

External links

• Zhang Shuai at the Women's Tennis Association