Down match point in a grand slam semi-final she was giving away, Li Na knew she could rely on her mental toughness forged through hardship in the industrial city of Wuhan.
Losing a match would be nothing like losing her father when she was 14, and then growing up an only child with a hard-working mother who, though not interested in sports, let her follow her passion for tennis.
'I always try to stay positive, and my team gives me good energy,' Li, 28, told the South China Morning Post in an interview after she bounced back to save the match point and beat world No1 Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.
'There were only 20 seconds between points, there was not much time to think. I always tell myself to stay focused, take some chances, make her move into different positions.
'She is younger than me [20], and I was feeling she was a little shaky. She can only put the ball back to me but not hurt me. She couldn't hit a lot of winners. So I thought 'now is my chance'.'
A risk-taker by nature, Li stayed aggressive and with the crowd chanting her name between points, she painted the lines with her signature hard, flat ground-strokes.
'I made a lot of mistakes in the first set and also the beginning of the second set. After I saved match point, I was thinking now I have a chance.'
