China

Li Ting will return after break - CTA

(China Daily)
Updated: 2007-02-16 08:48

Li Ting is not about to retire due to bad form - not if the Chinese Tennis Association is to be believed.

The CTA has denied mounting speculation that the Athens women's doubles gold medallist is ending her career, despite Sina.com reporting this week that she was granted permission to retire on her fourth request.

The CTA said she was merely being granted time off to recover from injuries and rediscover her form.

"Li will be quitting the national team for some time but she is not going to retire," said spokeswoman Xie Miqing. "She is still an Olympic member and also a potential competitor at the Beijing Games.

"We will give her more time to adjust her form and recover from injuries before bringing her back to play a role in the national team."

Li, 26, is receiving medical treatment for an injured waist.

She expressed her desire to wrap up her career after the Tenth National Games in 2005 but was persuaded to stay by the CTA, which holds a much larger sway over its players than its foreign counterparts do.

Li and Sun Tiantian grabbed China's first Olympic tennis gold in 2004, but her form has since plummeted. Li picked up one title last year and came unstuck in the semi-finals at the Doha Asian Games. The doubles specialists were split up last month to allow for some experimentation in a bid to ensure China has the best possible pairings for the Beijing Olympics.

Li Na, now 16th in the WTA Tour singles rankings, Peng Shuai, Li Ting, Sun Tiantian and youngsters Sun Shengnan and Ji Chunmei are trying out different partnerships at WTA events.

The final three Olympic pairs will be decided in June, when the new Olympic Points System takes effect.

However, the new rotation has had an adverse effect on Li Ting, who is 2-9 this season partnered with Ji.