Qinwen Zheng made a brutally honest admission at the WTA Finals: she prefers to keep her distance from other players because they are her competition.
22-year-old Zheng has enjoyed a breakthrough season. She won a gold medal in the women's singles at this year's Olympics and was the runner-up to Aryna Sabalenka in the finals of the Australian Open and the Wuhan Open.
Zheng also won the Japan Open title last month. She overcame 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin, who was suffering from an injury but still fought bravely to make the final a competitive contest.
Those achievements meant she qualified for the WTA Finals ahead of Emma Navarro. In her opening match of the Finals, Zheng lost to Sabalenka for the fourth time this season, bringing the Belarusian closer to the No. 1 ranking.
Although her achievements on the court have been outstanding in 2024, Zheng's behavior sometimes attracts controversy. The world No. 7 is known for the cold handshakes she usually gives after defeats.
Emma Navarro had a heated interaction with the eventual gold medalist after their Olympics match. The American said she did not respect her as a competitor and hinted she was not pleasant behind the scenes.
At the Wuhan Open, Zheng got into a tense exchange with Leylah Fernandez's father. She claimed the Canadian's parent was distracting her, while Fernandez's father accused the 22-year-old of disrespect.
It is challenging to determine whether Zheng was wrong or right in that case based on the available footage. However, the Japan Open winner's actions toward a line judge in the Wuhan Open final were unjustified.
After she could not retrieve a lob from Sabalenka in Wuhan, Zheng shouted in a line judge's face, claiming he got in her way. But the line judge was nowhere near Zheng when she hit the shot and the umpire correctly dismissed her accusations.
The Chinese No. 1 does not seem to be a favorite among her fellow players, but Zheng mentioned in a press conference at the WTA Finals that she deliberately does not make friends on the WTA Tour and likes to keep her distance.
"My answer is very clear: I prefer always to keep my distance from the player. Has a lot of competition with me. I am, like, type of sensitive with the heart. I don't feel if I become friends with someone and I have to compete with them on court, I feel I'm not able 100% focus and fighting."
"In my heart, I feel if it's a friend, I really want her win or she feel good in her life. This is opposite side than the tennis tournament. Once I figured out that, I decided not to try to make a friend on tour because there are so many people outside of the tennis world. Why I have to just make friends here?"
Zheng said her conversations with the other players at the WTA Finals did not extend beyond saying hello and congratulating them on their seasons since she does not want to make friends.
"We are just saying hello. Sometimes say congrats to your great season. No more talk with no more people. I never go for more. I don't try to go for more, as well, yeah."