'Moving Great Wall:' China unleash towering teen basketball star
The 18-year-old centre scored 18 points as China beat great rivals Japan 101-92 on Wednesday in Xi'an in a warm-up for the regional tournament next month on home soil.
It was her third appearance for the senior Chinese squad, having helped them to blowout victories over Bosnia and Herzegovina over the weekend.
Chinese state media dubbed her and gangly centre Han Xu the "Twin Towers."
Zhang's looming presence on court — footage showed her barely needing to jump to make a basket — seemed to stump Japan head coach Corey Gaines.
Asked if he had figured out a way "to deal" with the teenager, the American ex-NBA guard told reporters: "We'll just say: Interesting. Very interesting."
Zhang Ziyu (#28) shoots as Japan's Azusa Asahina (#14/R) blocks during a warm-up game in Xian. AFP
Zhang hails from northern China's Shandong province and had reached 2.10m by the end of primary school. She has been likened by Chinese fans to Houston Rockets great Yao Ming.
Yao, who at 2.29m was one of the tallest NBA players in history, was known as the "moving Great Wall" before retiring from basketball in 2011 and Zhang has now taken on the nickname.
Both of Zhang's parents played professional basketball.
Her father, Zhang Lei, turned out for the Chinese Basketball Association's Jinan Military Region while her mother Yu Ying played as a centre for Shandong, according to local media.
Zhang Ziyu (#28) shoots as Japan's Miwa Kuribayashi (#77) and Nanako Todo (#75) try to block during a warm-up game. AFP
The teenager may have a distinct height advantage but she has been told she needs to sharpen up.
Experienced centre Yang Liwei said after Wednesday's win that Zhang "could have been tougher on some shots".
"I think she played at her normal level," added Yang, who helped China win the Asian title in 2023.
China meet Japan again on Friday at home for another warm-up.
Both will play at the Women's Asia Cup in Shenzhen from July 13.
Agence France-Presse
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