"My idol was Roger Federer, I always say he’s amazing; when I was young, I often go in front of TV to watch his match" -  Zheng Qinwen

For the past two decades, Roger Federer has inspired many tennis players with his near-perfect game and unbridled flair. Among those players is rising teenage star Zheng Qinwen, who was often hooked to the television set as a kid when the Swiss maestro played.

Speaking about all things tennis during a recent interview with Daily China, Zheng lay special emphasis on her admiration for Roger Federer.

"My idol was Roger Federer, I always say he’s amazing. When I was young, I often go in front of TV to watch his match," Zheng said.

In one of her interviews during the French Open, Zheng revealed that she often watched videos of matches involving the 20-time Major champion and his great rivals Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, trying to learn as much as she could from them.

“I'm watching a lot, Djokovic, and then of course Roger Federer, Nadal, all the best players," Zheng had said.

The teenager impressed earlier this year with a run to the second round at the Australian Open as a qualifier, where she lost to Maria Sakkari. But her breakthrough performance came at Roland Garros, where she defeated former champion Simona Halep in the second round.

Zheng then went on to beat another experienced campaigner in Alize Cornet, before becoming the only player to take a set off the dominant Iga Swiatek at the 2022 French Open. Zheng eventually lost to Swiatek after picking up an injury in the second set.

In a separate interview with CGTN Sports, Zheng spoke of the need to improve the mental aspect of her game, especially during "important moments" in a match.

"Everybody say my game is really aggressive, but sometimes I don’t have enough patience…so I try to be more patient on court in important moments," Zheng said.

"In important moments you have to stay with the opponent and try to play against them. In tennis, it's not who is stronger that can win the match, but who is more able to hold the tense moments and who can make a better choice during the match," she added.

"When I enter the court I will not think she is World No. 1, or she won a Grand Slam before" - Zheng Qinwen

Qinwen Zheng in action at the 2022 French Open

During her interview with Daily China, Zheng Qinwen also shed some light on her mindset during matches, explaining that she doesn't look at an opponent's credentials.

"When I enter the court I will not think she is World No. 1, or she won a Grand Slam before. You just play against one racket, she’s your opponent and she’s a human being, everything can be possible," Zheng said.

Speaking about the match against Swiatek in particular, the 19-year-old asserted that she wanted to make things as difficult as possible for the World No. 1.

"I don’t want to give her the match so easy like that…I want to show her that it’s not easy to beat me," Zheng said.

After a successful French Open campaign, Zheng Qinwen reached a career-high ranking of No. 54. The teenager will make her first-ever main-draw appearance at Wimbledon later this month.