Li Na has been a great pioneer for tennis in China. In 2014 she won her second Grand Slam at the Australian Open and achieved a career-best ranking of world No.2 shortly afterwards. However, seven months later she was forced to retire, at the age of 32, because of knee injuries. Over the course of her career, Li Na also won the 2011 French Open and reached the final of the Australian Open in 2011 and 2013. In total she won seven other WTA events. As the first Chinese player to win a Grand Slam event, with a large following in the country, she was responsible for a dramatic increase in the growth of tennis in China.

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