There is no debate that 2024 was the year of Qinwen Zheng. The Chinese tennis superstar started the season with a run to the Australian Open finals and ended in the title match at the WTA Finals.

Most impressively, Zheng won a gold medal in women’s singles at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. The 22-year-old finished the year as the WTA World No. 5 with a record of 50-18 and three singles titles.

It is not a matter of if but when Zheng wins her first Grand Slam. The growing pressure of high expectations just got even heavier as Zheng encountered an unexpected obstacle for the 2025 Australian Open.

Zheng will be without her coach, Pere Riba. The Spanish tennis coach is undergoing hip surgery and will be sidelined through March. However, they will remain in contact throughout his rehabilitation. Meanwhile, IMG, which manages Zheng, helped her secure Dante Bottini as her interim coach.

Riba has worked with Zheng on and off for the past few years. The two originally partnered in early 2021 before splitting after the 2023 French Open.

Zheng worked with Wim Fissette for the second half of the 2023 season, eventually parting ways after the 2023 US Open. Meanwhile, Riba coached Coco Gauff during her incredible run that culminated in her first Grand Slam title at the 2023 US Open.

In early December 2023, Zheng announced that she had “reunited” with Riba as her coach for 2024. The move paid off as Zheng enjoyed the best year of her career.

Just last month, Riba gave a ringing endorsement of Zheng’s potential in an interview with The National. He said, “I don’t see that she’s at the top of her potential. To be honest, I think she is at 60% of what she can be. And this gives me a lot of confidence that she’s going to be one day there, I really believe that.”

The Australian Open runs from January 12-26, 2025. Tennis fans can follow Sports Illustrated’s Serve on SI for all the most important news from the sport.