"Novak Djokovic takes his gold medal everywhere, it’s funny" - Zheng Qinwen pokes fun at Serb, reveals turning down his Great Wall of China invitation

Zheng Qinwen recently revealed that she had to turn down Novak Djokovic's invitation to play at the Great Wall of China. The Serb and the Chinese are both in China currently for their respective tournaments.

Djokovic finally clinched the elusive gold medal at the Paris Olympics when he defeated Carlos Alcaraz in a hard-fought straight-setter. Meanwhile, Qinwen also bagged a straight-set win against Donna Vekic to win Asia's first-ever gold in singles at the Olympics.

Interestingly, the two gold medalists have chosen different approaches to celebrating their wins. While the Serb has been traveling to other tournaments with his medal, the Chinese has decided to move on from her historic triumph.

The 24-time Major champion has arrived in China ahead of his appearance at the Shanghai Masters. Ahead of the tournament, he played tennis at the Great Wall of China for an event conducted by Lacoste, the Serb's jersey sponsor, titled 'Tha Shadow of a Champion on the Great Wall' for which he played tennis on the Long Wall.

Zheng Qinwen, who is currently competing at the China Open, was asked about how Djokovic had brought his medal to China while she had kept her at home after her third-round win.

The Chinese said she found it funny that the Serb was taking his gold everywhere. She revealed that she was invited by the Serb to play on the Great Wall but had to turn it down due to scheduling issues.

“I think this is a very funny story. People talk about Djokovic takes his gold medal everywhere he goes. It's really funny that he has the gold medal here. He actually invited me to the Great Wall, but because of the schedule, I couldn't be there,” Zheng Qinwen said.

Qinwen further added how winning the gold medal brought a lot of joy, citing Djokovic as an example. She expressed her wish to practice with the 37-year-old and take a picture with his gold medal.

“I think, indeed, the gold medal brings me a lot of energy, just like Djokovic. He has the gold medal everywhere he goes, from Europe to the U.S. and all the way to China.”

“Of course, the gold medal brought him a lot of great energy. I did not have the chance to take a picture with his gold medal. I really wish I could practice with him with his gold medal.”

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Zheng Qinwen will face Amanda Anisimova in the fourth round of the China Open, and Novak Djokovic will receive a bye at the Shanghai Masters

Zheng Qinwen (Source: Getty)

Seeded fifth at the WTA 1000 event, home favorite Zheng Qinwen has been in phenomenal form. The Chinese received a bye in the opening round due to her seed and kicked off her campaign by decimating Kamilla Rakhimova 6-1, 6-1. Following this win, she defeated Nadia Podoroska 6-3, 6-2 to reach the fourth round.

Qinwen will face 34th seed Amanda Anisimova next, in what will be the second encounter between the two. The Chinese have won their sole meeting so far. The winner of their match will play either Mirra Andreeva or Magda Linette.

Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic will be competing at the Shanghai Masters next. He is seeded fourth at the event and will receive a bye as a result of it. He will face either Alex Michelsen or Yunchaokete Bu in the second round.

The Serb is placed in the bottom half of the draw, which also includes second seed Alexander Zverev, sixth seed Andrey Rublev, seventh seed Taylor Fritz, and others.