Photo by Amy Beth Bennett

Chen takes women's tennis team up charts

Jing Chen is a living testimonial to the worldwide popularity of the graceful game called tennis.

Chen, the Cal State Long Beach women's tennis team's number one ranked player loves to play the game. Chen said that tennis is a thinking person's sport.

"I really enjoy playing tennis because one must use strategy and technique in order to win," Chen explained.

Chen, 24, is a native of Shanghai, a major bustling city located in the eastern part of the People's Republic of China.

She credits her brother, Yong, with introducing her to his sport. Yong began teaching his sister to play when she was eight.

With Chen at the No. 1 spot, CSULB is ranked No. 71 in the nation. This is the first national ranking ever for the 49ers. As an individual, she is ranked 105th, the highest for a CSULB netter in over ten years. In her hometown, she was ranked No. 7 in singles and No. 2 in doubles.

In 1992, she reached the finals in doubles match and the quarterfinals in singles match in the Junior Asia Tournament in Manila, Philippines.

However, prior tennis commitments back in China deterred her from playing in the finals.

In December 1994, Chen left her country to pursue an Accounting degree in the United States. With the help of friends, she obtained a tennis scholarship for the University of Central Florida (UCF) in Orlando.

A year later, she left Orlando and transferred to CSULB to finish her education.

"I think that the Business program at CSULB is much better than UCF's program," Chen said. "And I have more friends living in California."

The main problem Chen suffers playing tennis is a strategy referred as "playing the net" in which the player must aggressively approach the net and intimidate the opponent in order to acquire a point.

"I do not really play the net very often, but I feel I should, " Chen said.

"I feel more comfortable playing behind the baseline (a line at the rear of each end of the court) because I am worried about my opponent's good passing shots whenever I approach the net, " she explained.

Chen said she enjoys playing tennis in the United States because of the many facilities and tournaments available to the public.

Back in her homeland, she said fewer courts are open to the public, despite the great number of people there who play tennis. She also said that in Shanghai there are more clay courts than hard courts.

"I grew up playing on clay courts that is why I performed very well in a tournament (the All-America Tournament) on clay courts held in Baltimore last September," Chen explained.

Besides her passion for tennis, Chen loves music. She learned to play the violin and piano at the early age of 5. Now she wants to learn golf, a sport she views as similar to tennis.

About the team, Chen said her relationship with coach Jamie Jones and her teammates is good.

"Everybody really works hard, and Jamie is really a good coach and an excellent player because she competes with us during the team's practice sessions," she said.

While good professional tennis players can quickly join the ranks of the affluent, Chen said she is uncertain whether she will pursue a career in the sport.

On the contrary, her goal is to finish her education and return to her native city to follow a slightly less profitable profession, in the field of accounting.

"Shanghai is a very big city, and there are many job opportunities waiting for me there," Chen said.