Screenshot from Sina Weibo

A 2.26-meter tall Chinese girl's dominant performance during the women's final in China's U15 National Basketball League drew anticipation from netizens who expect her to become the next Chinese basketball superstar, like Yao Ming. 

The 14-year-old girl, named Zhang Ziyu, from East China's Shandong Province quickly became a trending topic on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo on Thursday, after she scored a total of 42 points, helping her team win the title in the competition held in Jingzhou, Central China's Hubei Province recently. Her outstanding performance included capturing 25 rebounds and blocking six shots. 

In a video circulating on the internet, Zhang stands out from the crowd as she is obviously much taller than the other players. In fact, she is the same height as Chinese basketball superstar Yao Ming. During the competition, she easily intercepted balls thrown around the court and at the hoop. 

Many internet users on the internet wished her a prosperous future and anticipate that she will become another Yao Ming and a superstar for women's basketball. "The future of the Chinese women's basketball counts on you," a netizen on China's Twitter-like Weibo said.

"The point is that she is only 14, she will have a promising future if she improves her skills and confrontation ability," another commented. 

Some netizens also noticed that the competition seemed to not be very fair. "Of course, it's a one sided victory," a user on Twitter commented after viewing the video. 

Zhang has been taller than her peers since she was a young girl. She was 1.6 meters tall when she was a grade one pupil and she reached 2.11 meters tall at grade six. 

According to media reports, Zhang was born from a basketball family with both her father and mother being former professional basketball players. Her father is 2.13 meters tall while her mother, named Yu Ying, a former member of China's national women's basketball team, stands at 1.98 meters tall. 

Many netizens sighed at her powerful family genes. "She is just 14 years old. What will be her height when she reaches 20 or 22," a netizen on Twitter wondered. 

Global Times