On July 12, Zheng Wei, head coach of the Chinese Women’s Basketball Team, gave an interview to the media, addressing several issues concerning the Chinese Women’s Basketball Team.
Regarding Olympic group stage opponents Spain and Serbia
Zheng Wei: Strong European teams such as Spain, France, Serbia, and Belgium are all very powerful, ranking among the top four in Europe. The gap between each team is small. As for our group stage opponents, Spain and Serbia, they are also two very strong European teams with different styles. It is a huge challenge for the Chinese Women’s Basketball Team, but we know each other well. We are now simulating and conducting targeted training. We hope that through these two weeks, we can improve continuously.
Regarding the upcoming schedule for the women’s basketball team
Zheng Wei: On the 16th, we will depart from Beijing for Reims, France, where we will play two warm-up games against France and Belgium. We are striving to find more opponents for practice matches before the Olympics start. We are still in contact for this purpose. Through training matches, we aim to adapt to the intensity of international competitions.
Regarding Li Meng’s injury status
Zheng Wei: Li Meng only rejoined the team when playing domestic warm-up games and has been actively rehabilitating. We have a large support team dedicated to helping players recover and train. Although she didn’t play in the European warm-ups, she has been working hard to recover. Her personal condition has improved significantly. After returning to Beijing, she has been training with the team over the past few days. She still needs to gel with the team. She is very experienced, and we’ll try our best to adjust her condition to be as good as possible.
Regarding problems encountered during European training camp
Zheng Wei: Firstly, adapting to the intensity of international matches, dealing with pressure, and putting pressure on opponents are areas where we are somewhat unaccustomed. Currently, we are gradually adapting. Watching the video of each game allows us to identify and address problems. We believe the team’s situation will continue to improve.
