Q: What has been Zhang Jike’s condition since his withdrawal from stage one of the Marvellous 12?
Liu Guoliang: Zhang Jike is receiving laser therapy in Shenzhen now. At first, he planned to go back to Beijing on March 6th for treatment and come back to Shenzhen on March 7th. But we think that he would get too tired. So the team decided to let the team doctor bring the equipment from Beijing to Shenzhen.
In the Qatar Open, he pulled out because of a fever. His foot was ok then. So we decide to let him compete in this selection. But yesterday his foot injury became worse. He is motivated to compete, but we do not want him to take risks. We will assess his recovery situation to decide whether he will compete in the second stage.
He is able to move but he is afraid to worsen the injury. Usually people can just lie in the bed and relax but players cannot. They still need training to maintain their competitive condition. I talk to Zhang Jike every day to monitor his injury. And our principle is to protect him from getting worse.
Q: If Zhang Jike does not perform well in the Marvellous 12, will the team still pick him for the WTTC?
Liu Guoliang: We still need to see his injury and condition. If he does not play any more matches and just relaxes in the next few months, then his foot may improve but his “hand” may get “injured”. He could not find any rhythm then. In this case, he won’t have any competitiveness even though we send him to WTTC. So we will see his injury and condition to decide.
