Young Chinese players keen to improve

BEIJING - Young Chinese ace Zhang Ze is keen to continue improving after his four-set battle against renowned Australian veteran Lleyton Hewitt in the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I second-round tie on Sunday.

Zhang, who lost to Hewitt 6-2, 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (2) in the fourth and ultimately decisive match, sees a clear gap between him and the two-time Grand Slam winner, but said he learned some valuable lessons.

"He is a former world No 1. I was too nervous to play my best in the first two sets. The nerves came from a lack of experience facing high-ranking opponents," Zhang, 21, said after the match.

Inspired by cheering local fans, Zhang (pictured) felt relaxed and played more aggressively in the final two sets, but still missed a lot of easy shots near the net.

"I just tried too hard when I got the chances. It's not about technique. It's still about experience. I just need to be tougher mentally," said Zhang, who ranks No 382 in the world.

"I also still need to tune up my serves, improving the accuracy while keeping the power," Zhang said.

After challenging Hewitt on Sunday and encountering another Australian star, Bernard Tomic, on Friday, Zhang shared his opinion of the two.

"Tomic hits better and serves harder while Hewitt runs faster and returns smarter," he said.

China Daily

(China Daily 07/11/2011 page24)