In the almost 80-year history, Zhizhen Zhang is the first Chinese professional to serve at the Generali Open in Kitzbühel. To get in the mood for the tournament week, he went to the Hahnenkamm.
from PM
Last edited: 08/01/2023, 10:40 am
© Alex Scheuber
Zhizhen Zang at the world famous Mousetrap
In the almost 80-year history, Zhizhen Zhang is the first Chinese professional to serve at the Generali Open in Kitzbühel. The 26-year-old from Shanghai is having the best season of his career and is currently breaking all records: in 2022 he was the first Chinese man to make the top 100. Since July 2023 he has been the first Chinese man to scratch the top 50 in the world rankings. At Roland Garros, he was the first in his country to reach the third round, was the first Chinese to reach the quarter-finals in Madrid, where he defeated Taylor Fritz, and qualified for Wimbledon and the US Open – right, that too as the first from China.
Now “Z”, as his team calls him, is the first Chinese ever to serve in the Gamsstadt: “I didn’t know that I was the first Chinese tennis pro here in Kitzbühel, but I’m always happy to be the first somewhere and I’m proud to be here in Kitzbühel,” explains the likeable 26-year-old, who used his arrival in Kitzbühel to go for a walk on the Hahnenkamm: “It’s my first time here and I’m really surprised that it’s so beautiful here . It’s almost unbelievable for me that people ski here and especially jump over the mousetrap. That’s really impressive. I live in Shanghai, so I’ve never seen snow. That would make me really happy to come back in winter.” For the first time ever, Zhizheng saw cows and ate the Kaiserschmarrn after the hike.
After reaching the ATP semi-finals in Hamburg last week, Zhang comes to Kitzbühel with a lot of self-confidence. With Dusan Lajovic, however, a tough opponent awaits him today. Lajovic has reached the quarter-finals five times in Kitzbühel in his seven main draw appearances so far and has celebrated 15 of his 17 ATP Tour victories on clay this season: “Hopefully we can show the fans a good match against Lajovic today. He will be a very difficult opponent,” Zhang knows.
In preparation for the Olympic Games, which are of great importance in China, the organizers of the Generali Open were able to sign Zhang a two-year contract.
2023-08-01 11:10:00
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