Serving the nation with pride

Wang is joined in the 64-player women's singles draw by 53rd-ranked teammate Zheng Saisai. Two pairs－Yang Zhaoxuan and Xu Yifan, and Duan Yingying and Zheng－will represent China in the 32-team doubles tournament in Tokyo. No Chinese men have qualified for any tennis event.

Observing a vigilant pre-Games health protocol devised by the Chinese Olympic Committee, all five players pulled out of the grass-court season in early June to return home and train together in Rizhao, Shandong province.

Missing out on tour-level events for a month risks a drop off in consistency, but Chinese players reckon that they can never be too careful while the pandemic threat remains.

With four days to go before the delayed Games open on Friday in Tokyo, COVID-19 infections have been surging in the Japanese capital, with organizers on Sunday reporting that two athletes and a team colleague had tested positive in the Olympic Village.

"Under the special circumstances of the pandemic, it's necessary to give up some tournaments to stay safe together and make sure we head to Tokyo healthy and prepared... so our national duty won't be jeopardized," said Zheng, who will appear at her second Olympics after playing doubles with Xu at the 2016 Rio Games.

To better facilitate the preparations, the Chinese Tennis Association refurbished the training center in Rizhao, a city with a similar climate to Tokyo, by laying the same surface as the Olympic courts and upgrading services for fitness, rehab and nutrition.

The tennis action in Tokyo is scheduled for July 24-Aug 1, with China aiming to spring some surprises and even step onto the podium.

"Our target is to raise our national flag on the court at the Olympics," said national team head coach Yang Weiguang. "We are confident knowing that we've done what we can to prepare for the event. We will give our utmost to compete for our goals."

In terms of prestige, the four Grand Slams remain more important than the Olympic tennis tournament. Yet, 17 years ago, Li Ting and Sun Tiantian's women's doubles gold medal at the 2004 Athens Games proved to be a game-changer for the sport in China.

Triggered by that breakthrough, the sport has since flourished in China, with more tour-level tournaments being staged and Chinese players enjoying greater success on the court－most notably Li Na's two major wins, at the 2011 French Open and 2014 Australian Open.

However, with no Chinese players managing to progress beyond the quarterfinals, in either singles or doubles, at the previous two Games, more Olympic success would be a timely shot in the arm for tennis in the world's most populous nation.