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3 min readApr 30, 2026 03:23 PM IST
India's PV Sindhu and World No. 2 China's Wang Zhi Yi. (Express photo by Amit Mehra)
World No 2 Wang Zhi Yi won the All England finally beating An Se-young. But landing at the Uber Cup, she ran into perennial nemesis PV Sindhu. Though she defeated the Indian in 3 tough sets and China won 5-0, it was a wringer of an opening rubber. Reason? Zhiyi has decided to answer as much as she can, in English.
Here’s how the media interaction in the mixed zone went. First she spoke of the hassling attack of Sindhu. “The venue is relatively small and the shuttle is faster which was more conducive to Sindhu’s playing style, so the difficulty of my defense increased. In team events, her playing style is very oppressive and has a lot of momentum. So i think today was a very difficult match.”
Then Zhiyi spoke of her celebration. Sindhu’s attack had left her so edgy before she pulled out the match, that the pre-rehearsed celebration went off key. “After winning, the celebration interaction with my teammates was a bit off,” she said. A coordinated roar with a synchronized giant fist pump was planned. “The first attempt wasn’t successful because we didn’t coordinate well. It was also a bit of an overreaction on my part,” she admitted, translated frim Chinese.
Her first question in English was about how team events are different from individual tournaments. “The biggest difference is pressure, usually im fighting for myself. But this time I’m fighting for team and country,” she aced the reply.
Then came the apparent soft-question, when a local Danish lady reporter asked her, which boggled Zhiyi. “Being with China team, is it a lot of fun or is serious?” she got asked. Unable to fully understand or frame the answer, she paused while a Chinese speaking mediaperson tried simplifying the question. “How’s your mood inside Chinese team? Do you feel better or more relaxed?”
It wasn’t exactly Chinese whispers, just a paraphrasing. But Zhiyi had clearly understood the original question better. She tried to explain her confusion instead. “Sometimes when I get a question in English, I can only get the general meaning. I understand it but I’m not sure if I’m using the right words. I dont know what she asked and I don’t know how to answer,” she would say.
While leaving the mixed zone, she would tell Chinese journalists, “I just can’t let go of any chance to speak English. But that question was really…….” trailing off. Really fun? Serious? Difficult.
English (US) ·