Zhang Ziyu 42+14, the Chinese U18 women's basketball team still didn't win
Rising basketball star: 17-year-old Zhang Ziyu's road to the Asian Cup
When the dust settled on the evening of June 30, 2024 in the final of the U18 Women's Basketball Asian Cup, the Chinese team lost to the defending champion Australia and had no choice but to win the silver medal, the unique performance of a 17-year-old girl undoubtedly became the biggest highlight of the entire tournament. She is Zhang Ziyu from Shandong.
The 2.24-meter-tall young talent scored an astonishing 42 points and 14 rebounds in the final to become the Most Valuable Player of the Asian Cup. Although she couldn't help the team beat a strong Australian team in the end, her spectacular performances certainly gave people a lot of hope for her future development.
Zhang Ziyu's wonderful appearance
In the entire Asian Cup, Zhang Ziyu's performance was undoubtedly the best. From the group stage all the way to the final, she showed her outstanding ability.
In the group stage, Zhang Ziyu has already begun to shine. Against weaker opponents, she dominated the pace of the game with ease and on her own, constantly creating a threat in attack and excelling in defence. In the group stage against New Zealand and Japan, she contributed 28 points, 9 rebounds and 26 points and 11 rebounds respectively, fully demonstrating her all-round strength.
After entering the knockout round, Zhang Ziyu's performance was even more eye-catching. In the semifinals, she scored 18 points in the second quarter to help her team quickly extend their lead and eventually win comfortably over South Korea.
But in the final, facing a strong Australian team, Zhang Ziyu encountered a greater challenge. The Australians were targeted and tight, putting a lot of pressure on her attack. However, even in such a difficult situation, Zhang Ziyu still played well, and finally set an astonishing stat of 42 points and 14 rebounds. Although she couldn't help the team win against the opponent, her excellent performance was undoubtedly the biggest highlight of the game.
The young basketball prodigy, with his excellent physical fitness and extraordinary skills, undoubtedly became the center of attention in this Asian Cup match. Her wonderful performance has also attracted widespread attention, and she is known as the "female version of Yao Ming" by the outside world.
The path to growth
Zhang Ziyu's basketball road has not been smooth sailing. Before that, she didn't get much attention until she made a splash on the stage of the U18 Women's Basketball Asian Cup.
Zhang Ziyu was born in 2007 and is from Shandong. From an early age, she showed extraordinary physical qualities, especially her excellent height advantage. By the time she was in junior high school, she had already become a well-known local basketball prodigy, attracting a lot of attention from coaches and fans.
In 2022, Zhang Ziyu entered the Shandong women's basketball team and started his formal basketball training. With her excellent physical fitness and unremitting efforts, she quickly grew into a core player in the echelon and attracted the attention of the Chinese Basketball Association.
In 2023, Zhang Ziyu was selected for the Chinese U18 women's national basketball team and began his national team journey. During the year's training and competitions, she continued to improve her technical and tactical literacy, and gradually grew into the main force of the team.
Finally, at the 2024 U18 Women's Basketball Asian Cup, Zhang Ziyu ushered in her international debut, and broke out with an amazing performance at a critical moment, becoming the biggest highlight of this competition. Although she couldn't help the team win the championship in the end, her wonderful performance undoubtedly won widespread attention and recognition for herself.
The future is promising
For Zhang Ziyu, this Asian Cup experience is undoubtedly an important milestone. Not only did she successfully enter the national team, but she also showed excellent competitiveness at critical moments, which attracted a lot of attention from the basketball world.
In this Asian Cup competition, Zhang Ziyu showed excellent all-round strength. Not only is she tall and versatile on the offensive end, but she also excels on the defensive end. Especially in terms of mid-range and toss, she showed a very good level of skill and was impressive.
In addition, Zhang Ziyu also showed a very good sense of teamwork. She is able to quickly pass the ball to her teammates when she is confronted by targeted defences, creating good scoring opportunities for them. Such excellent coordination ability also fully reflects her basketball IQ.
Overall, Zhang Ziyu's performance in this Asian Cup has undoubtedly won him wide attention and recognition. As a 17-year-old young talent, she has already shown world-class potential and will surely become a dazzling new star in Chinese and Asian basketball in the future.
For Zhang Ziyu, this Asian Cup is just the beginning of her career. In the future, she will face more opportunities and challenges. I believe that with her excellent skills and courageous fighting spirit, she will be able to continue to emerge in the future arena and add luster to Chinese basketball.
There is no doubt that Zhang Ziyu is undoubtedly a new star in the future of Chinese basketball. Her outstanding physical, technical and tactical literacy will surely bring new hope to Chinese basketball. We look forward to seeing this 17-year-old Shandong girl continue to shine on a higher level in the near future and make Chinese basketball famous."
Rising basketball star: 17-year-old Zhang Ziyu's road to the Asian Cup
When the dust settled on the evening of June 30, 2024 in the final of the U18 Women's Basketball Asian Cup, the Chinese team lost to the defending champion Australia and had no choice but to win the silver medal, the unique performance of a 17-year-old girl undoubtedly became the biggest highlight of the entire tournament. She is Zhang Ziyu from Shandong.
The 2.24-meter-tall young talent scored an astonishing 42 points and 14 rebounds in the final to become the Most Valuable Player of the Asian Cup. Although she couldn't help the team beat a strong Australian team in the end, her spectacular performances certainly gave people a lot of hope for her future development.
Zhang Ziyu's wonderful appearance
In the entire Asian Cup, Zhang Ziyu's performance was undoubtedly the best. From the group stage all the way to the final, she showed her outstanding ability.
After entering the knockout round, Zhang Ziyu's performance was even more eye-catching. In the semifinals, she scored 18 points in the second quarter to help her team quickly extend their lead and eventually win comfortably over South Korea.
But in the final, facing a strong Australian team, Zhang Ziyu encountered a greater challenge. The Australians were targeted and tight, putting a lot of pressure on her attack. However, even in such a difficult situation, Zhang Ziyu still played well, and finally set an astonishing stat of 42 points and 14 rebounds. Although she couldn't help the team win against the opponent, her excellent performance was undoubtedly the biggest highlight of the game.
The young basketball prodigy, with his excellent physical fitness and extraordinary skills, undoubtedly became the center of attention in this Asian Cup match. Her wonderful performance has also attracted widespread attention, and she is known as the "female version of Yao Ming" by the outside world.
The future is promising
For Zhang Ziyu, this Asian Cup experience is undoubtedly an important milestone. Not only did she successfully enter the national team, but she also showed excellent competitiveness at critical moments, which attracted a lot of attention from the basketball world.
In this Asian Cup competition, Zhang Ziyu showed excellent all-round strength. Not only is she tall and versatile on the offensive end, but she also excels on the defensive end. Especially in terms of mid-range and toss, she showed a very good level of skill and was impressive.
In addition, Zhang Ziyu also showed a very good sense of teamwork. She is able to quickly pass the ball to her teammates when she is confronted by targeted defences, creating good scoring opportunities for them. Such excellent coordination ability also fully reflects her basketball IQ.
Overall, Zhang Ziyu's performance in this Asian Cup has undoubtedly won him wide attention and recognition. As a 17-year-old young talent, she has already shown world-class potential and will surely become a dazzling new star in Chinese and Asian basketball in the future.
I believe that in the next game, Zhang Ziyu will be able to continue to play an outstanding performance and win more honors for the national team. We look forward to this young basketball talent being able to shine on a higher stage in the future and become a banner of Chinese basketball.