"I think it was because of the whole package," Eisenbud said. "If Peng Shuai or Zheng Jie would have done the same thing, I honestly don't think it would have been the same."

“我想是因为她身上的一整套东西，”艾森巴德说。“假如彭帅或者郑洁取得了相同的成绩，说实话我觉得也不会一样。”

We will never know, and though the natural conclusion is that young Chinese players inspired by Li will soon be holding up more major trophies¹, there are no guarantees. Germany once ruled the tennis world and marketplace with Graf and Boris Becker only to see the sport all but disappear from the radar² in a hurry. Since Yao's retirement³, Chinese players are hardly taking the N.B.A. by storm.

这一点是真是假，将永远不得而知。自然而然的推论是，在李娜的激励下，中国的年轻选手将很快再次举起大满贯奖杯，但这也没法打包票。德国曾经同时拥有格拉芙和鲍里斯·贝克尔(Boris Becker)，在球场和市场上叱咤风云。可是不一会儿功夫，德国网球就几乎从人们眼前消失了。姚明退役之后，中国球员也没在NBA掀起什么波澜。

"The tennis boom in China is not a given," said Paul McNamee, the former Australian Open tournament director who was part of that event's push into China and Asia. "It will require nurturing⁴ and support. However, with the aura of Li Na and her desire to stay involved, I can see future Grand Slam champions from China within a decade."

“中国的网球热并不是理所当然的事情，”澳网前赛事总监保罗·麦克纳米(Paul McNamee)说。他曾协助澳网在中国和亚洲进行推广。“这需要培养和扶持。好在有李娜的人气，她也渴望继续参与。我想10年之内中国能再出大满贯冠军。”

Li does intend to remain involved: commercially, philanthropically and developmentally, with an academy in the works and IMG, the sports and media talent agency that has recommitted to tennis under new ownership, looking to leverage⁵ her success for the long term.

李娜的确准备留在网球界，无论是商业、慈善，还是运动项目发展方面。她正在筹备一所网球学校，而体育与媒体经纪公司IMG在所有权变更之后决定重新关注网球领域，也着眼于长期开发利用她的影响力。

But her forced retirement does once again deprive the WTA Tour of more star power and the opportunity to create what it sorely lacks: a genuine rivalry⁶ at the top. Serena Williams has seen plenty of prospects⁷ exit the stage earlier than could have been expected: Martina Hingis, Elena Dementieva, Dinara Safina, Henin and Clijsters. "Put it in chronological⁸ order, it's pretty mind-boggling," said Williams's childhood coach Rick Macci.

不过，她的被迫退役确实使得WTA巡回赛的星光又黯淡了一些，也令女子网坛再次失去了弥补其最大缺失的机会：WTA始终未能在最高层次上创造出棋逢对手的局面。塞雷娜·威廉姆斯(Serena Williams)眼看着一个又一个潜在的对手早早退役：玛蒂娜·辛吉斯(Martina Hingis)、叶连娜·德门蒂耶娃(Elena Dementieva)、迪娜拉·萨芬娜(Dinara Safina)、海宁，还有克里斯特尔斯。“按时间先后数过来，实在让人震惊，”威廉姆斯的儿时教练里克·马奇(Rick Macci)说。

Li beat Williams only once in 12 matches and never in a Grand Slam. When Li lost to her for the last time in this year's Miami final in a summit meeting between No. 1 and No. 2, Carlos Rodriguez, Li's coach at that time, gave her another pep talk.

在与威廉姆斯的12次交锋中，李娜仅赢得了一场比赛，而且不是在大满贯赛场上。她上次输给威廉姆斯是在今年的迈阿密站决赛中，身为头两号种子的二人上演了巅峰对决。李娜当时的教练卡洛斯·罗德里格斯(Carlos Rodriguez)赛后对她进行了又一番鼓励。

" 'Listen,' I told her, 'You are evolving more and more,' " he said. " 'It takes time. You cannot do what you didn't do in 17 years in a hurry. You have to believe in it, and if you believe, it will work.' "

“'听着，'我告诉她，'你越来越进步了，'”他说。“'需要花一些时间。17年都没做到的事情，不可能一蹴而就。你必须抱有信念，有了信念，就能成功。'”

Six months later, Li, the late bloomer, has run out of time and the ability to play through the pain. But her career path was still quite an evolution, and it will be fascinating to see how the game she once rejected evolves from here: in China and beyond.

六个月后，大器晚成的李娜没有了时间和体能再去经历这番涅槃重生。然而，她的职业生涯一路走来，仍是相当精彩。至于这项她曾经排斥的运动，在中国及其之外的地方又会如何演变，将成为一个吸引眼球的好故事。